


Just Another Face In The Crowd

by impalaimagining



Category: Supernatural, Supernatural RPF
Genre: Angst, Angst and Fluff and Smut, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Fluff and Smut, Implied/Referenced Suicide, Jared Padalecki - Freeform, References to Depression, Smut, Supernatural - Freeform, Supernatural RPF - Freeform, Triggers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-21
Updated: 2018-01-02
Packaged: 2019-02-04 22:37:25
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 11
Words: 36,114
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12781095
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/impalaimagining/pseuds/impalaimagining
Summary: At your first convention, you meet your hero, Jared Padalecki. You make a last minute decision to give him a letter thanking him.





	1. Just Another Face In The Crowd

**Author's Note:**

> Solely for the sake of the story, Jensen is married to Danneel, but Jared and Gen went their separate ways after she left the show. No disrespect of any kind intended toward her. This is my first fic, please enjoy! Feedback is very appreciated. :)

You kept your distance from the crowd, trying to find a seat away from everyone. 

_Why had you come to the convention alone?_

You were staying in your friend’s apartment for the weekend, but she had never even seen the show, so she wasn’t interested in joining you for the panel. She dropped you off and left, telling you to call her when you were ready to leave.

You spent ten minutes relocating any time anyone sat next to you. You had just settled into a seat pretty far back when the house lights began to dim, signaling the start of the panel.

Rob walked on stage, accompanied by the band, and started singing. You heard a voice harmonizing with Rob’s, and your heart raced at the thought of who else would be singing with him. After what felt like the longest minute of your life, Rob said the words you’d be waiting months to hear.

“Please, welcome to the stage, Jensen Ackles and Jared Padalecki!” 

You’d never heard so many screams. Everyone was on their feet, clapping and yelling, shouting their ‘I love you’s. Your heart stopped when the spotlights flicked on to the men and they smiled.

Jared’s eyes scanned the crowd, smiling and waving, telling the fans they loved them back. Jensen pulled two chairs to the front of the stage, placing them next to one another. 

You sat near the back of the room, but you could almost swear you locked eyes with Jared.

_How could he have even seen you with the lights so dim?_

He looked at his feet and smiled a little wider, making his dimples show even more. You couldn’t believe that you had finally saved enough money to buy admission and a photo-op for this convention - that you were going to  _meet_  Jared Padalecki in a matter of hours. 

They started taking questions. Typical ones flowed in, such as, “Who is your favorite cast member to work with?” and, “What do you think will happen now that Mary is back?”

Then the microphone passed in front of your face. They wanted a question from  _you._ Your heart pounded in your chest.

_What were you going to ask?_

A thousand things ran through your mind, but how could you even begin to form words? Jared Padalecki was  _looking at you_  - staring into your eyes. You swallowed hard, pushing back the bundle of nerves forming in your stomach.

Finally, you opened your mouth. It was dry. Suddenly, you desperately needed a drink. Jared noticed your frozen stature and called for someone backstage to bring out a water bottle. He motioned toward you, and they brought it to you quickly. You drank just under half of the bottle in one gulp, not thinking or caring about what the people around you had to say about it. You swallowed the water, shaking your head to clear your mind as much as you could.

This was it. This was your chance to thank Jared for what he’d done for you. They requested that the audience refrain from sharing personal stories with the actors, but your had to thank him at the very least. You had so much to say, but you knew you’d have only a minute to spew it out. You thought about your coming words very carefully.

“Okay, now, hello.” He laughed into the microphone.

“Uh, hi.” You blushed.

“Do you have a name?” His dimples showed through his hiatus scruff, the beginnings of his infamous beard littering his cheeks.

“Oh, yeah. I’m [Y/N].”

“And what’s your question, [Y/N]?”

Hearing him say your name made your knees buckle, but you held steady and kept your composure.

“Well, I - first I want to say thank you, Jared. Your Always Keep Fighting campaign has gotten me through so much.” You looked toward the stage to see Jensen sitting on the edge of his seat, listening to every word you said.

“That’s not really a question, ya know.” Jensen joked and cocked an eyebrow at you before Jared smacked his shoulder lightly, as if to hush him.  _Or defend you?_

“Oh! Uh, my question is, now that Danneel is pregnant with twins, how will you handle two new kids as a father? And how will you handle it as their uncle, Jared?” You instantly felt as though you had chosen the wrong question to ask out of the million swirling around your brain.

“Oh, that’s a good one.” Jared chuckled, calming your nerves. He looked at Jensen, who was holding his head in his hands.

“I’m not ready to be out-numbered by munchkins!” Jensen fake cried and hung his head.

Jared laughed and rubbed his shoulder to comfort him.

“I think it’s great. And hey! If you include me, you won’t be out-numbered!” Jared his Jensen’s shoulder again.

They bantered back and forth for a little while about how awesome it would be to have “Uncle Jared” around to help with the babies and their toddler, JJ.

“Thank you so much for bringing this up, [Y/N]. I think you’ve given us the greatest idea we’ve ever had.” Jared smiled at you, and your heart leapt in your chest.

“Really, thanks.” Jensen rolled his eyes and then shot you a smile as well.

You thanked them for the opportunity and that was it. your interaction with your two favorite actors had come and gone in a matter of seven minutes. Now, you were looking forward to the photo-op even more than you previously had been.

* * *

You stood in line for your photo-op. This was the moment you’d  _actually_  been waiting for. You’d get to meet and thank Jared, even if it was very briefly.

Again, they requested that the personal stories were saved for another time. You had  _so_  much to tell Jared. He had no idea who you were, but he pulled you from your darkest time. You needed him to know what an impact he had on your life.

You could almost feel the light bulb click on above your head as you pulled your backpack around to the front of your body. You dug frantically, searching for your notebook and praying you’d remembered to pack it. Finally, you felt it and yanked it from the bag. You quickly opened it and began writing.

_Jared,_

_I didn’t have the money for any kind of personal session with you, so this was the only way I could tell you my story. I’m sorry it’s so impersonal. You don’t even know I exist, but you are the reason I’m still alive. I began watching your show a little over a year ago, and not long after, I found out about your Always Keep Fighting campaign. My heart was shattered to learn that you - someone who seemed so outwardly happy - could be struggling with the same thing I lost my best friend to. He committed suicide after battling depression and post-traumatic stress disorder. I lost him, and my world went dark. I was spiraling, falling into the deepest and darkest place I’d been in my entire life. You and your campaign pulled me out of a hole. I will never be able to express how much you mean to me as a person and an actor. I am forever grateful that I learned about AKF when I did._

_Thank you endlessly for your humility,_

_[Y/N] [Y/L/N]_

You signed the letter, barely able to fold it before you were motioned forward to step into the photo area. Jared smiled at you quickly, then furrowed his brow for a second.

“You’re [Y/N], right?”

**_How did he remember your name?_ **

Your eyes grew wide as you nodded. He smiled and hugged you, causing your eyes to grow even wider. You hugged back, somehow finding the strength to hold yourself up on shaky knees.

He pulled away, pointed to the camera, and told you to give it your best smile. The flash was blinding, and you again prayed that you didn’t blink or flinch or have a double chin in the photo. They gave you only one shot to get the perfect photo with the perfect man.

You turned to walk away, dropping the folded piece of paper in your hand. He bent down and picked it up. He called your name, trying to hand it back to you. you blushed and shook your head.

“That’s actually for you.” You almost whispered.

“For me? Well, thank you. I very much look forward to unfolding it.” He grinned, winked at you, and shoved the letter in his pocket.

You smiled back at him, and then realized that you had forgotten to put any contact information on the paper.

“Actually, is there any chance I could get that back for a second?” Your cheeks flashed bright pink.

“Oh, sure.” He gave you a puzzled look, but fished for the paper and handed it to you.

You scrawled your phone number and email address on the paper. You didn’t even come close to expecting any kind of response, but just in case, you figured you should give him a way to reach you.

You handed the paper back to him, but instead of just taking the letter, Jared took your hand, pulled it to his face and kissed the back of it. You saw the camera flash out of the corner of your eye and prayed you didn’t look as horrified or inadequate as you felt in that moment.

That picture would be the better of the two, or at least you hoped so.

You didn’t know it, but Jared’s heart fluttered just as much as yours did when your hand hit his lips.

Clearing your throat, you motioned over your shoulder and he nodded.

“I should step away, let someone else get their turn.” You spat the words, not knowing how you composed yourself enough to form a sentence.

“I guess so, but thank you again for the note.” He smiled, waved, and reached out to hug you one more time.

 _“Oh this was so worth my entire month’s paycheck”_ you thought to yourself as you spun on your heel and practically bounced to the door. 

You quickly typed a text message to your friend saying that you were ready to be picked up, and she was there in a matter of minutes.

You had a lot to tell her.


	2. The Call

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jared reads the letter and everything - literally everything - changes for him and Reader.

You spilled your guts to your friend on the short ride back to her apartment. Your words came out in bursts, and you barely breathed between sentences. 

“Whoa, [Y/N], calm down. You told him  _everything?”_ she was shocked. She knew what you went through, but she couldn’t believe you had told Jared. You barely knew him.

“Yeah, I did. I mean, I wrote him a letter. I didn’t actually talk to him - I could hardly breathe.” you faked a laugh, thinking back on how frozen you’d become when the microphone was in front of you. 

“A letter? A letter. So you didn’t actually  _tell_  him, and you don’t even know if he’s going to read it, [Y/N]!” she hit your arm lightly, and realization dawned on you. 

“Shit” you groaned and leaned your head against the window.

As you closed your eyes and sighed, Jared’s words replayed in your head, “ _I very much look forward to unfolding it.”_ God, you hoped he meant that.

The rest of the ride back was quiet. You left her place the next morning, thanking her for the hospitality, but reminding her that you had work and the real world to return to. You hugged and parted ways, promising to stay in touch like you always did.

* * *

Your drive home was a long one, but your music kept you alert. Your speakers blared with the radio and your thumbs drummed on the steering wheel along to the beat. 

Your head was filled with thoughts and questions and of course, you were second-guessing yourself. 

_Why did I write him that stupid letter? He doesn’t care about what I’ve been through. That was my one shot to really thank him. And I couldn’t even do that. I’m such an idiot._

Your thoughts rolled on and on, just like the road in front of you. 

Pulling up to your house had never been so relieving. You threw your duffel bag over your shoulder and trudged through the door. Tossing your bag on the ground, you flopped down on to the couch, probably a bit harder than you should have. You laid down, finally feeling at ease for the first time since you walked through the convention center doors.

You turned the television on and let the voices become white noise. Your eyes drifted shut and you fell asleep. 

* * *

Your eyes shot open as your phone rang.

_What the heck…_

You rubbed your eyes and ran a hand through your hair, waking yourself up slightly. You picked up the phone and saw your reflection. Someone was FaceTime calling you. You didn’t recognize the number, but your phone told you it was from Austin, Texas. A friend of yours went to school there and stuck around afterward, so you considered answering it, but figured if it was important they would call again. It rang until the person on the other end decided to give up.

Then it began ringing again.

You checked, and it was the same number. Still trying to FaceTime with you. A million things ran through your head, the most prominent thought being a sarcastic,  _I’m sure I look fantastic right now._

You rolled your eyes and adjusted the angle of the phone to somehow make yourself look slightly better. Then you slid your finger across the bottom of the screen. It read ‘ _connecting’_  across the top, right below the number. You flicked the television off to get rid of the background noise.

When the phone made a  _whoosh_  noise, your heart literally skipped a beat. You felt like you were going to faint. It’s a good thing you were sitting down. 

**Jared Padalecki’s face filled your screen.**

“Hey, [Y/N]!” He beamed and his voice boomed and echoed throughout your almost-empty living room. 

“Um… I- uh, hi?” You stammered, suddenly realizing just how bad you actually did look.

He looked stunning, even in his ‘I can stay in for the night’ clothes. A white v-neck shirt, grey sweatpants, and a navy blue baseball cap, turned backwards.

“I read your letter. I’m really glad you decided to put your phone number at the bottom.” He smiled again, and you couldn’t help but blush.

“I just- I figured that you should have some way to- to reach me, just in case. I don’t know, I’m sorry. It- it was probably too much.” Your cheeks were so warm.

“No, not at all. Hey, thank you. I loved reading your story. You’re incredible, [Y/N]. I cannot believe you pulled through all of that, and you’re giving me the credit? No way. That was all you.” 

Your heart fluttered like crazy.  _Was he really talking to you right now?_

_"_ Jared, I could not have done that on my own. If I hadn’t found out about Always Keep Fighting and Love Yourself First, I wouldn’t be here. I promise you that.” You knew you were about to cry, so you stopped talking.

“Hey, no. It was you. Please don’t think this is weird - where do you live?” He asked the question and tried to smile, but it ended up being more like a grimace, almost like he shouldn’t have asked the question.

“Um, what? Why?” You wanted to just blurt out your current location, but your curiosity took over before you could.

“I want to send you something. This is my cell phone number, so you can just send it to me in a text message. But please, please don’t broadcast my number anywhere?” He smiled and put his hand over his heart, showing that he was begging for you to keep it confidential. 

“Oh, no! No, I wouldn’t event think about it. Wait, you called me on your personal phone?” You were incredibly shocked, to say the least.

“Yeah, I wanted this to mean something. You mean some- something to me.” He looked down, away from the screen.

_Did he just blush? Your mouth went dry._

“What?” It was the only thing you could choke out. 

“You mean something to me. That letter, it- it’s pretty much ruined now. Don’t make fun of me,” he chuckled, took off his hat, and ran a hand through his hair before putting it back on. “I might have cried on it. A lot.” 

“Aw, my gosh, I’m so sorry. I just wanted to thank you. I didn’t mean to -” You were cut off.

“No! No, hey, I told you I loved it. I really couldn’t wait to open it, like I told you during your photo-op. It took everything I had to wait until the convention was over and we were back at the hotel. And when I did, it was so worth the wait. You’re amazing, [Y/N].” He couldn’t stop smiling.

“You said that already.” You laughed as you felt your cheeks get increasingly more red. You couldn’t bring yourself to make eye contact with the man on your screen.

“So, hey, text me your address and something will be there in a few days for you!” His dimples were killing you.

“O- okay.” You could not believe this was actually happening. 

You suddenly realized no one would believe you if you told them about this. You took a screenshot of him on your screen so you had proof for anyone who doubted you. He heard the camera shutter noise and frowned slightly.

He had just started to say something else when the noise cut him off.

“Hey! You said you wouldn’t put it anywhere!” He fake-scolded you.

“I’m not going to, I promise! I swear, I swear, Jared!” You realized it was the first time you’d called him by his name. 

His eyes wrinkled a little when his smile grew at the sound of your voice saying his name.

“I trust you.” He nodded.

Those words had never meant more to you than they did when he said them. 

“Good, you should. I’m not one of those fans who’s looking to stalk you.” You giggled and watched his smile grow again.

“At least not too much, right?” He laughed in response to your snickering.

“Right, of course. Because I wouldn’t be a real fan if I didn’t at least kind of stalk you.” 

“Exactly. But is it considered stalking if I give you the information?” He tilted his head and brought his hand to his scruffy chin to mock thinking.

“Hmm, question of the day, Mr. Padalecki.” You had no idea how you were doing this - how you were holding a conversation with Jared freakin’ Padalecki - without falling apart at the seams.

Something about his voice was so comforting. It was like he knew exactly what you needed to hear, like he knew how insecure you were and he was going to build you up just by talking. 

“I should let you go. You probably have better things to do than talk to me about stalking me.” His laugh was infectious.

“Trust me, I have  _nothing_  better to do. Nothing would be better than what I’m doing right now.”  _Did you seriously just say that? What the hell was wrong with you?_

“Cute.” He grinned and your body melted into the back of the couch with embarrassment.

“Not cute, definitely not cute. I’m so embarrassing.” Your brought your hand to cover your face as you shook your head. You knew you were the color of a fire truck at this point, and you didn’t even have makeup on to cover your pink cheeks.

_Shit. You weren’t wearing makeup._

You’d had makeup on at the convention, so you were realizing that he had never seen you without it.

_Well, duh. This was only the second time he’s seen you, ever. And here you were, ugly and fat and gushing your heart out to him._

You suddenly felt incredibly inferior to the perfect man on the other end of the line. 

“Hey, what’s wrong?” He furrowed his brow, seeing that you were no longer smiling like you had been a minute ago.

“Nothing, but I should let you go. I think you probably have more important things to do than talking to some weird fan who wrote you the millionth letter you’ve received.” Your voice was serious, and he noticed that your playful demeanor had dissipated completely. 

“No, what’s going on? You’re different. What are you thinking about? I’m not going. I have nothing else to be doing, certainly nothing more important than this.” He shot you a half-smile through the phone and the corner of your mouth perked up in response. 

_He was so perfect. Why was he talking to you? Why was he **still**  talking to you?_

“And your letter was only like the thousandth, not millionth.” He laughed a little, trying to help ease whatever was bothering you. “No matter what number it was, it was absolutely the most heartfelt. All the other ones say things like ‘Oh, Jared I love you so much! Please send me an autographed photo of you!’” He rolled his eyes as he mimicked the letters, using a higher-pitched voice.

Your laughter came in waves as he kept talking. It was so easy to relax to the sound of his voice. You found yourself smiling again - real smiles, not the fake ones you’d been plastering on your face for the past year. Smiles like this hadn’t graced your face in a long time.

“There we go.” He pointed at his phone’s camera, making it look like he was pointing at you.

“What?” You blushed again.

“You’re smiling. That’s what I wanted to see.” Now he was blushing. 

_No way._

“You make me smile, Jared. I can’t even try to hold it back.”

“I like making you smile, [Y/N]. It’s a good look for you.” he winked and you swore your heart stopped.

_Was there anything he couldn’t do to make you feel like this?_

_“_ Jared…” Your voice trailed off because you couldn’t think of how to respond. 

_When was the last time anyone complimented you? And now it was Jared Padalecki? This couldn’t be real. You’d never woken up. You were still dreaming._

_“_ [Y/N]? Everything okay?” The concerned look on his face was nothing compared to the smile he’d been giving you previously. 

“Yeah, yeah I’m good. This just can’t be real. You called me.  _Me._  I’m just a girl, some girl who could barely even talk to you when I met you. Then you freakin’ kissed my hand and I almost passed out! This can’t be real. I woke up to a phone call from Jared Padalecki? Uh uh. I’m still sleeping or I’m in heaven.” You were running through every interaction you’d had with this beautiful man, wondering how much of it was real and how much was a dream. 

“It is real. I called you. I’m talking to you. You’re awake, you’re alive, and you’re incredible. I kissed your hand, yes. But I wanted to kiss  _you.”_

**_No. Way._ **

“Y- you WHAT?” You couldn’t help the raise in your voice.

“I couldn’t just kiss some ‘random fan’.” He air quoted with one hand. “There were so many cameras. I- I so badly wanted to just scoop you up and kiss you right there. I don’t know what it was about you. I hadn’t even known what the letter said yet, but you were already so special. I can’t explain it, but I knew there was something about you that I could just  _love.”_

_Did he just say love…_

_“_ Jared…” You said it again. You couldn’t find the words.

“I mean it, [Y/N]. I don’t understand how one person could have such a pull on me, but here we are. I have never called a fan before. Like I told you, I was so happy to see your phone number at the bottom of that page.” His pink cheeks barely peeked out from behind his few-day-scruff.

You were in a daze between staring at him like he was the most beautiful person you’d ever seen (because let’s face it, he was) and trying to collect your own thoughts.

He just told you he’d never called a fan before. You were the only phone call he had ever made to anyone who wasn’t on the show or family to him.

Then you heard noise coming from behind him.

“ _Hey, Jar! We gotta hit the road in a little while - whoa, what’re you, on the phone or something?”_ You knew the husky off-screen voice sounded familiar.

Jensen Ackles’s face was now taking up half of your screen. 

“Uh, yeah. Any chance you remember [Y/N] from the convention?”

You expected an instant ‘no.’

“The girl with the twin question!” His face lit up, and so did yours.

_He remembers me too?!_

_Y_ our heart thumped.

“Yeah, that was me. Sorry for hitting a nerve.” You gave them a small smile.

“Oh, no, I meant it when I said it was a great idea-hatching question. Danneel is going to kill us for what we have planned, but we’ll handle that.” Jared shared a look with Jensen and they started laughing. It was contagious, and you joined in.

They calmed down and Jensen became serious again. 

“Jar, really though, we should get going.” He gestured to where you could only assume there was a clock and Jared’s eyes grew wide when he noticed the time.

“We’ve been on the phone for over an hour…” He stammered. 

“What? No, it’s only been like ten minutes.” You checked the clock on your wall, and sure enough, it had been an hour and six minutes since your phone rang and Jared Padalecki had been the one calling you.

“You have to go?” You almost whimpered at your phone.

“I do, I’m sorry. I’ll call you again when we get to the next town!” He held up his pinky finger and you gave him a confused look. “Pinky promise.” He laughed lightly.

“You do that too?! My gosh…” You blushed, knowing how childish you had to seem.

“Yeah, but I didn’t think anyone else still did.” He nodded.

“I do. Pinky promises are kind of my thing.” You laughed at the thought.

“Well then? They can be  _our_  thing.” He raised his finger one more time.

“Pinky promise.” You grinned.

“ _Hey, [Y/N]!_ ” You heard Jensen’s voice again.

“Yes?” you squeaked back.

“You’ve really gotten to him, ya know.” He was back on the screen again, and pointed to Jared.

“Oh, well, I- I uh -” You were at a loss for words. Again.

“No, it’s a good thing. He’s been floating on a cloud since he read your letter. You’re amazing, by the way!” He turned and his voice fell away from the phone, then you heard a door closing.

“Well, that was a little too much for him to just blurt out to you.” Jared faked a small laugh and turned bright red.

“Hey, just call me, okay?” You held up your little finger and smiled.

“Of course.” His finger showed on your screen and you both felt your hearts swell.

“You think I could try to get another screen-cap of this call? Ya know, where we both know it’s happening so we actually smile instead of being mid-word?” You giggled.

“For sure. Ready? On three. I want one too!” His dimples deepened.

He counted to three, and you both beamed into the camera of your phones, creating the best picture of you with no makeup on in existence. 

“I’ll talk to… er see? you later!” You weren’t sure when, but you knew you’d be hearing his voice and seeing his face again, and the thought made your heart soar.

“Yes, you will. Don’t forget how amazing you are!” He leaned in and kissed the camera, mimicking kissing you. 

Your heart pounded at the sight of his lips. He had the goofiest face when he leaned in, too.

“Bye, Jared!” You laughed whole-heartedly.

“Bye, [Y/N]!” He loved seeing you happy, and he couldn’t really explain why. Your laugh made his stomach flip and twist.  _Almost like butterflies._

The sound of the phone hanging up had never been a sadder sound for either one of you.

* * *

You sat on your couch, your mind reeling over what had just happened. Then you tapped the message icon on your phone screen, typed Jared’s number into the recipient bar, and sent him your address. 

You quickly exited that app, your fingers searching desperately for your photos. You opened the first one you took, the screenshot where he was in the middle of talking. His mouth curved perfectly around whatever word he was saying. You looked at the small picture of yourself in the corner, deciding that you didn’t look too bad after all. Then you swiped to the next photo.

There it was, the one you’d both been ready for. You knew he had this on his phone too. 

_Was he staring at it like you were? Probably not._

You shook your head at your own thoughts. You looked back to your phone, seeing him smiling at you. Your eyes fell on the small photo of yourself in the corner again, and you noticed your smile. It was like a completely different person was in the picture. This was not the girl you’d seen in the mirror every day for months on end. This girl was  _happy._ This had to be one of your best photos. Your fingers quickly found the ‘set as wallpaper’ option on the photo, and you assigned it to your home screen. Every time you opened your phone, there he was, dimples, perfect teeth, and beautiful eyes all smiling at you.

Your heart began to beat faster, and you knew that somehow, you were falling for a man you barely knew. 


	3. First Kiss

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jared and Jensen visit the reader. Drinking and learning about one another ensue.

* * *

 

You dreamt about his phone call that night. His voice rang through your head, and his words played over and over again. 

“ _I wanted to kiss you.”_

Even in your sleep, your heart raced.

Morning came, and you rolled over, away from the sunlight coming through your window. You rubbed your eyes sleepily and reached for your phone. There were three messages from Jared.

**“Good morning!”  
**

**“I hope you slept well. Wake up sleepy head :)”  
**

**“It’s getting late. Shouldn’t you be up for work? I wish I was there to wake you up in person.”**

You jumped out of bed upon reading the last message. Running to the bathroom, you laid your phone on the corner of the sink and quickly ran your fingers through your hair, deciding you would opt for pulling it up today instead of taking the time to brush it.

You slapped minimal makeup on your face, knowing you should’ve been wearing more. Tripping over yourself, you fumbled into your bedroom, looking for something to wear that would look like you had given it at least a little bit of thought. You settled on a teal and black maxi-skirt, black tank top, and black blazer. Glancing in the mirror, you decided it would have to do. You grabbed a pair of black sandals, knowing you would regret that the second you walked out the door. Your keys were sitting on the table next to the door, making it easy to leave quickly.

Your drive to work was filled with loud music. There had to be some way to wake yourself up. 

 _I can’t drink more than one cup of coffee today. I hate that stuff._ Your thoughts were focusing on how to become more alert. The work day would drag on if you kept this up.

The commute seemed to go too quickly. You pulled into your parking spot in the company lot, quickly walking through the doors and to your desk. 

Instinctively, you reached for your phone to set it on the desk next to you. Your eyes grew wide with realization. You closed your eyes and pictured it sitting on the corner of your vanity, probably buzzing away. You hadn’t even had a chance to respond to Jared before leaving for work.

_Shit._

The day lulled on like no other you’d ever experienced. You filed what you needed to, emailed the right people, and stamped the date on any paper that made its way to your desk. The second your clock-out time arrived, you bolted for the door.

Driving home was a blur. The winding roads that led you to and from work were dangerous on a normal day, but the fact that you were going at least 20mph over the speed limit surely wasn’t helping. You didn’t care. 

You threw open the doors to both your car and then your house and made a bee-line for the bathroom. When your screen illuminated, you gasped. You had three missed calls and four messages from Jared.

**“Are you at work? Sorry for bothering you if you are.”  
**

**“[Y/N], I’m starting to get worried. You usually answer me right away.”  
**

**“This isn’t funny anymore. If I did something and that’s why you don’t want to talk to me, just tell me. Just say something, [Y/N].”  
**

**“I called and you didn’t answer. I need to know you’re okay. I’m booking a flight. See you tonight.”**

_What!_

Your fingers sped over the screen of your phone, fumbling to find the option to call him. The phone rang, and - thankfully - Jared’s voice filled your ears.

“[Y/N], oh my God.” He wasn’t happy.

“Jared, listen, I am so sorry. I left my phone at home today. I didn’t get the chance to text you before I left for work. I just got home, and I saw your messages. Don’t fly out here, I’m fine. You’re busy. I’m alright, I promise.” Your sentences slurred together, hardly any breathing between them.

“I’m sitting in the airport. I was serious. I need to see you after all this, make sure you’re okay.” He tried to make it sound comforting, but you knew he was angry. “We’ll be there in a few hours. About to board, actually.”

“We? Jared who are you bringing with you?” You could think of two people, but you really didn’t want to see anyone tonight, especially not Clif or even Jensen.

“Jensen, who else?” You could hear him smile through the phone.

“Of course. Jare, I don’t need you to do this.” You were almost begging him to stay in - wherever he was. 

You were realizing you didn’t know much about his life. He could’ve been halfway across the world and you wouldn’t have known.

_And did you just call him Jare? A nickname? Right now probably wasn’t the best time to start being cute._

“See you soon, [Y/N].” His voice had some kind of calming power over you, and for some reason, you agreed to seeing him.

Your town was small, probably not ready to take on two huge - one of them literally a giant - celebrities like Jared and Jensen. They’d have to stay pretty low key.

* * *

Cleaning your house had never been more important. You ran around, throwing clothes into the hamper, not caring if they made it or not. You would just close the closet door to hide the mess. You pulled the vacuum cleaner out of your closet and had just plugged it in when your doorbell rang. 

_It could not have been three hours._

You heard deep, muffled voices on the other side of your door. You hadn’t even had time to fix your hair or do your makeup. You had the same clothes on that you’d worn to work earlier that day, minus the blazer. Reluctantly, but anxiously, you walked toward the door and placed your hand on the doorknob.

The knob barely turned and the door was being pushed open. 

“[Y/N]!!” Jared threw his arms around your waist. 

_Not expecting that._

Your eyes grew wide, but you hugged him back. You threw a smile over his shoulder at Jensen before Jared loosened his grip. When you were able to pull away, you waved to Jensen and smiled again. He returned both gestures, and somehow you felt more at ease about this whole thing.

“I am so glad you’re okay. I was worried - so worried, [Y/N]. I know I shouldn’t be but wi- with everything you told me. I didn’t know if anything could’ve happened.” Jared was pouring his heart out. 

“Hey, I’m alright. I’m in front of you, standing here. Getting cold.” You chuckled and tried to lighten the mood. 

One corner of Jared’s mouth pulled up and his crooked half-smile made your pulse race. He took his jacket off and handed it to you. You smiled, inhaling subtly, trying to breathe in his scent. You wrapped the seemingly huge garment around yourself and thanked him. 

“So she has your jacket but you’re not gonna tell her what the fans thought of her?” Jensen nudged Jared’s arm and your eyes shot open.

“Y- You told people about me? Told  _fans_ about me, Jared?” Your voice was shaking, partly because of the cold and partly because of what you’d just heard.

“I might have let it slip that I met a really amazing, beautiful, sweet, caring girl.” He looked at his feet, and you were sure you could see his cheeks turning pink under that ever-growing scruff.

“Jared…” You had no words

“Guys, I think I’m gonna hit the road, head back to the hotel, let you work this out.” Jensen spoke up and motioned over his shoulder toward the car. “I’ll grab your bags and stuff, bring them back in for you.” He looked at Jared.

Jared shot you a glance, as if asking your permission for his bags to come into your house. 

_Was he planning on staying? **Here?**_

You nodded and Jensen walked to the car, grabbed the bags, and returned, handing Jared his duffel and carry-on.

Jensen turned to walk away, took a few steps, but then you called his name.

He spun around to see you coming toward him at an almost-running pace. What surprised him even more was when you threw your arms around him and buried your face in his shirt.

He was too shocked to move, but only for a second. His arms cradled you as you thanked him.

“I didn’t do anything, [Y/N]. Hey, calm down.” His hand smoothed your hair and he hugged you tighter as he felt you crying against him. 

You remembered Jared was probably watching you, but you didn’t care. You felt like you needed Jensen in this moment, like he was already your best friend, like he knew what you needed.

_How could you be so trusting of these men? You’d practically just met them, but it felt like you’d known them forever._

“You told me about - about what he said. Why did he do that? He shouldn’t have said anything.” Your voice cracked against your best efforts. “You came with him. You didn’t have to, Jensen.”

“You’re right, he shouldn’t have said anything. But listen, you really got to him. I’ve never seen him like this - ever. He cares about you. You’re a really amazing person, and very special to Jared. Hey, go talk to him. Go make sure he knows you’re okay. That’s why he’s here, after all, sweetheart.” Jensen smiled against your hair, making you smile too, even through your tears.

_Why the hell were you crying? And on Jensen, how embarrassing._

_“_ I’m so sorry for this.” You pulled away and wiped your tears, only then noticing how wet your face and his shirt had become.

“It’s alright. Just go get him.” He smiled, spun you around and pointed toward Jared, who had been staring at the two of you the entire time.

“Thank you, Jensen.” You smiled and hugged him again.

“Call me Jay, babe.” He winked at you and you suddenly remembered reading that he wasn’t too fond of his full name. 

You chuckled, nodded, and waved goodbye. Turning back to Jared, your smile faded, knowing you had a lot to talk about.

“Everything alright?” He couldn’t look at you.

“Just gotta talk some things through, I think.” You pushed past him shyly and walked inside, motioning for him to follow you. 

Inside, you shrugged out of his jacket, offering it back to him. He shook his head, so you hung it over the back of a chair. 

“Do you want anything to drink? Water, beer, something else?” You offered from the kitchen.

“A beer is good. Thank you.” His voice sounded much more timid than usual.

You turned the corner and saw him sitting on the couch. You handed him his beer and sat across the room on the recliner, still facing him.

“So you told fans about me.” It was a statement now, no longer a question. Your voice was cold.

“Yeah. I did, and I’m sorry. I should’ve asked you.” His eyes fell to the floor between the two of you.

“I want to tell you it’s alright, but I don’t think it is. Jared, you told them I was amazing and beautiful and all these things. They expect so much from me already, and I’m just one of them.” Your voice was on the verge of cracking again, and tears pricked in your eyes.

“You’re not just one of them, [Y/N]. You’re all of the things I said and probably so much more. I just haven’t seen enough of you yet to know, but I want to change that. I want to learn everything about you.” He glanced up at you from where his head rested on his hand.

“I am not just going to spill everything to you, Mr. Padalecki.” You couldn’t help but smile after blinking away the tears.

“That’s fine, we can make it into a game or something.” He grinned at you, and it was like the disagreement never happened.

“A game, huh? Let’s see what I can do about that.” You stood up and walked to the kitchen again.

Jared stayed on the couch. He heard glass clinking and cabinets closing. Then he heard you struggling and after hearing a loud sigh, he made his way to the kitchen as well. He turned the corner to see you standing on your toes, trying to reach something on the top shelf of a cabinet. He laughed a little bit, causing you to turn and glare at him.

“Something funny?” You meant to sound angry, but his dimples made it impossible.

“You put something on a shelf you couldn’t reach?” He walked toward you and effortlessly lifted a bottle off the shelf and set it on the counter next to you.

“I don’t drink it much, so I figured it would be fine up there.” You shrugged.

You opened the freezer and tossed a few ice cubes into each glass while Jared made his way back to the couch. You filled the glasses with deep brown liquid. Honestly you weren’t sure what it was - the bottle had been sitting there so long, you almost forgot you had it, plus it wasn’t yours.

“Looks good.” Jared nodded in your direction and smiled at you again.

“I’ll be honest with you, I have no idea what I’m even serving you right now.” You giggled and handed him the glass.

“That’s okay. I wasn’t talking about the liquor, anyway.” His cheeks turned a beautiful shade of pink.

_Whoa, what?_

_“_ Sure.” You rolled your eyes and scoffed at his remark. 

You walked to the couch, making sure you sat on the side completely opposite of Jared. He gave you a confused look, but turned to face you, tucking one of his legs under the other. You followed suit and sipped your drink. 

_God, it was bad._

You shuddered as the liquid hit your tongue.

“This is awful.” You laughed after you managed to swallow.

“I think it’s good. Maybe you’re not used to the hard stuff.” He raised his glass and motioned to it with his head.

You rolled your eyes again, jokingly this time. 

“I can take it.” You took another swig, this time enjoying the burn of it.

_No shudder, thank goodness._

_“_ So about this game…” Jared looked at you like you had a plan.

“How about this - I’ll tell you something about me, and if you don’t believe me, you drink. Then I’ll tell you if you drank for no reason or if you were right, that I was lying.” You raised and eyebrow at him.

“Sounds good. Same rules apply in reverse, though.” He flashed a smile.

“Of course, it’s only fair.” You raised your glass, clinked it with his, and began the game you’d just invented.

A few glasses later, you were warming up to him, and literally. You felt the red on your cheeks and you knew you had red splotches on your chest as well. It’d been a long time since you’d had this much to drink, and it had never been straight hard liquor like this - always mixed drinks. Your head was fuzzy, and you knew your words were slurring, but you didn’t care. You were so comfortable with this man.

“I used to live here with my ex-boyfriend.” You managed to form an entire sentence through your drunkenness.

Jared gulped down a huge sip of his drink, showing that he definitely didn’t believe this one.

“Wrong. We were together for _ever.”_ You rolled your eyes thinking about your last relationship.

_Should you be telling him this?_

_“_ No way. This house is so girly. No man would’ve lived here.” He waved his hand around the room, where the walls were covered in paintings.

“Jared, I painted all of this. He couldn’t say no to me hanging my own work.” You laughed.

“You did this? All of it?” His eyes wandered around the room, taking in each picture.

“Y- Yeah.” Your nerves were coming back, despite the liquid courage you’d had a few minutes ago.

“It’s amazing.” He rested his hand on your knee.

Your heart pounded in your chest, sounding like a kick-drum to you.

“Thank you.” Your voice was quiet, and you were staring at his hand.

“But, ex-boyfriend? How long is forever?” He was just now questioning your previous statement.

“Uh, almost seven years. Things got a little rough after I had a pregnancy scare.” Your words came out more easily than you expected them to. You’d only told one other person about your breakup, and that person was the best friend you’d lost.

“Wow, what a guy.” Jared rolled his eyes.

“What do you mean?” You were absolutely confused by how calm he was.

“He left because he was afraid of having a baby with  _you._ Trust me when I say that any baby that has any kind of genetics from you would not be a baby to run away from. I would be so proud of that kid.” He smiled without showing teeth.

The liquor was making this a lot easier for the both of you, apparently.

“Well, he wasn’t so keen on the idea. Said he wanted to marry me and all that nonsense, but a kid, God forbid he reproduce. Actually, that’s probably better. I don’t want two of him in this world.” You nodded, affirming your own opinion.

“Sounds like I don’t even want one of him here.” Jared scoffed, and you instantly knew this had struck a cord inside him that you didn’t even know existed.

_Jealousy? No, couldn’t be._

He started moving his thumb across the top of your thigh, making your nerves ever more present. You looked down, then smiled up at him.

“It’s been a long time since he left.” You put your hand over his.

“So it’s been a long time since anyone’s shown you any kind of affection? Since anyone has touched you…” He moved his hand up on your thigh, looking into your eyes the entire time.

“Yeah, a long time since anything.” You couldn’t break the gaze, but your voice was so quiet.

He finished his drink, secretly hoping it would give him the courage he needed to make his next moves. He set the empty glass down on the coffee table, and you mirrored his actions. His now free hand moved to push away the hair that had just fallen in your face with your recent movement. 

_Your cheeks were already so pink, and you swore they had to be red now._

His hand moved from your hair to cupping your cheek, his thumb resting just below your eye. He started moving his thumb almost thoughtlessly. You looked up into his eyes, losing yourself completely.

“Jared.” His name came from your mouth in a breath.

He didn’t respond with words. Instead, he brought his lips an inch from yours. You could feel the heat of his breath and smell the alcohol mixed with a new-to-you scent, entirely his.

You couldn’t help yourself anymore, so you all but lunged toward him, closing the gap between your mouths. 

You’d never felt a kiss like this. It was soft but powerful, needy but passionate, and it was  _Jared Padalecki._

Your inner fangirl was having a field day with this. Your inner self-conscious, timid, terrified self was threatening to show up, too, but your intoxicated state didn’t let either version of yourself stick around for too long. You found your way to Jared’s lap, never breaking the kiss.

“Bedroom.” He huffed the word out between kisses, and you hummed and nodded furiously against his lips.


	4. Tattoo

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jared finds out something new about Reader, and then realizes something about himself.

The hallway from the living room to your bedroom had never seemed longer. Jared’s hands were everywhere - your hair, your hips, your face, the small of your back. He stopped a few times to push you against random spots on the wall, kissing your harder each time. Your arms stayed wrapped around his neck, mostly, but sometimes they’d linger on his chest or back, feeling his muscles rippling as he moved, and other times they’d knot in his hair.

“Jared.” You could hardly breathe, and it was hard to get words out between his kisses, so his name came out as more of a moan.

That was all it took - you had set him on fire with one word. His tongue darted across your bottom lip, creating a new wave of intoxication within your body. This one was definitely not from the whiskey. You returned his gesture, acting more boldly than you ever had before.

This was all so new to you. You were with your last boyfriend for a long time, and things had never been this exciting - not even when you lost your virginity to him. You hadn’t been with anyone since he left, so Jared was only the second person you’d ever been with, but you knew exactly what you wanted from him.

He suddenly pulled away from you and held his hands on each of your hips.

“[Y/N], stop thinking. Do you want this?” His eyes grazed over your whole face, lingering on your lips.

“Yes, Jared, I want this more than anything. Sorry, my mind was just taking over. I’m good, let’s go.” You stood on your toes, trying to kiss him again.

He stopped you.

_What?_

“Promise me you want this. Pinky promise me.” He held up his right hand, pinky finger extended, and smiled at you.

You stuck your pinky finger up and wrapped it around his, beaming up at him, remembering what he said about that being  _your_ thing.

“I pinky promise. You’re all I’ve ever wanted, Jared.” You felt heat rise in your cheeks. 

Suddenly, it dawned on your that you weren’t nearly as drunk as you’d previously thought. You were sobering up very quickly, and you knew that meant you wouldn’t be as confident as you were up to this point.

“I’ll uh, be right back.” You pushed past him and took the bottle of whiskey in your hand.

You stared at it before shrugging and lifting the opening of the bottle to your lips. You immediately drank - probably a lot more than you should have. You ran back to Jared, bottle still in hand, and definitely feeling like you had it in you to follow through with this now.

“Whoa. What happened? Your beer goggles wear off? Couldn’t even stand to look at me without being drunk?” He took the bottle from you and set it on the small table in the hallway, then he threw a hand over his heart, mocking being hurt.

“Just needed a little liquid courage, that’s all. I do not need beer goggles to want to look at you, Jare.” You put your hand over the one on his chest and looked up at him.

“Doesn’t seem like you needed liquid courage, either. You were doing just fine.” He stepped toward you and pushed you against the wall again.

His lips were on yours before you could react. You arched up into him, unknowingly driving him crazy. He moved his hand to the backs of your thighs and started to pull upward, trying to lift you. You put your hands on his chest and pushed him backward, away from you.

“What?” He was confused. 

“You can’t lift me.” Your voice was quiet as you looked at the floor, hands still pressing against his chest.

“I can. Please, let me.” He put his hand over one of yours, pulling it away from his chest and intertwining your fingers.

“Jared, no way.” You still weren’t looking at him. “You cannot lift all of this.” You motioned with one hand to your torso, which was much larger than you’d like it to be.

“I got you. Trust me?” He leaned down and kissed you, but this time it was filled with something you couldn’t recognize. The heat was gone for a moment, replaced by something much more gentle.

You looked into his eyes finally, and saw exactly what you needed. You saw a man who wouldn’t hurt you, who wouldn’t pressure you or make you feel like you weren’t enough. The man looking back at you through beautiful hazel eyes was, as you told him, everything you’d ever wanted.

“I- I trust you.” You sighed slightly, putting your arms around his neck and pulling his face down to yours.

He cupped your cheek with his hand again, lifting your face until your lips met. First, the kiss was just like the last one - warm, gentle, and something else that you still couldn’t quite put your finger on. 

_Loving?_

You pushed the thought away as the kiss deepened. He was back to the greedy Jared who you’d pushed away a few minutes ago. His hands returned to their place on the backs of your thighs, again pulling upward. Instinctively, you resisted at first, but he was persistent, and you recalled your words.

“ _I trust you.”_

You knew you couldn’t lie to him, and you did trust him - way more than you probably should’ve at that point. You gave in, jumping a little as he picked you up.

Your legs wrapped around his hips, and your feet crossed behind him in an attempt to make it easier for him to hold you up.

“I told you, [Y/N], I got you. Relax.” His hands grazed your thighs, motioning for you to relax your muscles and let him just hold you.

You were thankful for the wall behind you, but that thankfulness ended as he pulled you away from the structure. Your full weight was on him now, and you didn’t know how he was doing it, but he walked into your bedroom with you still just hanging off of him.

The kisses never broke except when you needed to gasp in a breath. As you felt yourself getting closer to your bed, you unhooked your ankles and eased yourself down to the floor.

_Bad idea._

As you moved down, you felt  _everything._ Jared was not doing well to hide how badly he wanted you. Your heart raced and your skin began to crawl at the thought of this man wanting  _you._ You suddenly realized there was a growing heat between your legs. It had been a long time since you felt this way, and the fact that Jared Padalecki was the one to make you like this definitely didn’t help to calm the feeling spreading over your whole body.

You looked up at him and noticed that his eyes were all over you. He lingered on your face before looking down. Your tank top had both risen up and fallen down, however impossible that seemed. The bottom hem had ridden up to just below your breasts, and the collar - which was already pretty low - had made its way down even farther, almost completely exposing your bra. In that moment, you praised yourself for choosing sexy undergarments that morning, even in your rush.

Jared’s right arm wrapped around your waist, pulling you against him. His left hand brushed behind your ear, and you pulled away slightly, flinching.

“Careful.” You whispered in his ear.

“Wh- why?” Confusion graced his expression. He hadn’t been careful with you at all, and now he wondered if he was hurting you the whole time and you hadn’t spoken up until now.

You reached up to pull your hair - now in a very loose ponytail - to the left side of your neck, revealing a fairly fresh tattoo. The skin was still raised around the inked words that wrapped around your hairline and ended behind your ear.

“What is that?” He moved to the side instead of right in front of you, his hand replacing the one that was holding your hair. “Oh, my God.” His other hand clapped over his mouth and you turned quickly to see tears in his eyes.

You spun and held his face, ready to explain, but he moved you back to your previous position, staring at the tattoo.

“Can I touch it?” He lifted a finger toward your neck, waiting for you to give him permission.

You nodded and felt his finger lightly tracing over the curve of the letters. You smiled and blushed, wondering what he was thinking.

“This is incredible.” His voice threatened to break as he admired the words, answering your unspoken question.

“Thank you.” You couldn’t stop smiling, not knowing how you’d gone this long without telling him about it.

“Can - can I take a picture of it?” He glanced at your face for the first time since he’d seen your tattoo.

Again, you nodded, knowing that you would let him do anything he wanted to do. He pulled his phone from his pocket, swiping to bring up the camera. Realization hit you and you quickly fixed your shirt, just in case. Jared snapped the picture and moved to put his phone away, then a grin spread across his face.

“What?” You couldn’t help but return the smile.

“C’mere.” He reached out and put his arm over your shoulder, pulling you to him.

He flipped the camera so the front-facing one was in use, showing both of you on the screen. You looked disheveled, to say the least. Your hands shot up to smooth your hair, remembering you hadn’t brushed it that morning. He smiled over at you and shook his head.

“You look great. Stop.” The hand that was on your arm moved to capture your hands and push them back down, away from taming the beast atop your head.

You blushed and smiled shyly. Your eyes shot back up to the image on the phone screen - you and Jared Padalecki, standing so close to one another, his arm wrapped around you. You felt his hand drift from your shoulder, down your arm, lingering there and rubbing soothing patterns, then to your waist. Instinctively, you moved closer to him, wrapping your arm around his waist as well. He smiled at that.

“Say cheese!” He flashed his amazing smile at the camera, not noticing the face you were making until he pulled the picture back up to make sure you approved of it.

He burst out into laughter as he showed you the photo. Your nose was scrunched up and you were looking at him like he was crazy, as if your expression alone was asking him, “ _Did you seriously just say, ‘say cheese’?”_

You chuckled at the photo, but Jared’s laughter became infectious, and you joined him. You knew he was intoxicated by the amount of laughter coming from him - surely he didn’t find you that funny.

“Can we take a good one, please? And don’t say, ‘Say cheese!’ you dork.” You laughed and hit his shoulder playfully.

He held up a pinky, silently promising not to say it. Jared held his phone out again, not saying anything. The silence made you both laugh even more. Without you knowing, he snapped a photo of the two of you looking at each other, cracking up. He’d look at that one later. When you calmed down again, he repeated the motion, keeping his phone at arm’s length - which was pretty far away, you noticed.

This picture was good, or at least good enough. You had almost no makeup on, and what you did have on was smudged from the night’s previous activities, but it didn’t matter. You were happy for the first time in a long time. Sure, you’d smiled most days. You worked with people, so you had to smile at them. But none of those smiles were like the smile you wore in this photo. The only other time you smiled like this was in the screenshot you had of the FaceTime call with Jared. Something about him made you so genuinely happy, and you loved him for that.

_Whoa, loved him?_

He put his phone on your dresser and turned back to you. You were sitting on the end of your bed, looking at your feet, smiling. He joined you, pulling his leg up and tucking it under the other, like he had on the couch. He was facing you, smiling at you even though you couldn’t see him. You turned to face him, sitting with your legs crossed like a kid in school. You were staring at your hands, playing with your fingers. He reached over and put his hand on top of yours. you looked up to meet his gaze, immediately losing yourself again.

“Do you mind if I ask about the tattoo?” He spoke quietly, realizing the small distance between you.

“Not at all. I hoped you would, actually. I can’t believe I forgot to tell you about it. I really meant to - I was even going to send you a picture of it right after I got it done, but I guess it slipped my mind.” You looked down again.

“It’s fine. It’s amazing. I - why did you get it?” His finger lifted your chin and turned it slightly, and you knew he was looking at the tattoo again.

“You know most of why I got it, Jared. I told you, I lose my best friend to that shit. I found your campaign right after. If he had just kept fighting-” Your voice broke halfway through the last word, and you knew you had to stop talking and swallow the lump in your throat.

“Hey, [Y/N], I’m sorry. I just - I really love it.” His finger traced over it again, after tucking a strand of hair behind your ear, You could tell he was smiling.

“Thank you. I do too. It didn’t take long for me to make the commitment to getting an ‘Always Keep Fighting’ tattoo.” You smiled at him. “Meeting you was the final straw though - the defining moment in my decision. You’re so amazing, Jare, and you don’t even realize it.” Your hand found his face, cupping his cheek.

“I can say the same about you, sweetheart.” He turned his head into your hand and kissed your palm. “Your tattoo was the icing on the cake that was this incredible night. Is that my - my handwriting too?” His dimples showed up, making you feel weak.

“Yeah, it is. I found it on your instagram - sorry I know that’s so stalker-ish of me. And hey, this night still has a lot of potential.” You winked at him - completely out of character for you - but he laughed lightly and nodded in agreement.

Jared leaned in closer to you, and you didn’t have to wait much longer to feel his lips on yours again. Your hands were much greedier this time than they had been previously. You grabbed at his hair, tugging lightly, hearing his gasp at the sensation. You smiled into the kisses he was giving you. You felt him move and you thought he might be pulling away, so your hand pulled his face closer to yours, not wanting to ever let this stop. He smiled, laughing a little, and kissed you harder. His teeth grabbed at your lip, driving you insane. You wanted him so badly, and the alcohol still had you buzzing, so you acted on your feelings without hesitation. Jared had moved off the bed, now standing, but leaning down and kissing you. You decided if you were going to make your move, it had to be now.

You inched your way up the bed, pulling him with you. You were against the wall with Jared on his knees in front of you, hovering over you. You broke the kiss reluctantly, and looked up into his eyes.

_Holy shit._

They had been so innocent and caring before, but most of that was gone now - replaced with desire. His eyes drifted over your face, stilling on your lips for a second, then falling to your chest. You had just fixed your shirt a few minutes ago, but somehow, he’d messed it up again in that short time. His grin sent a whole new wave of want over you. It was a needy grin, almost one that said, “This will be mine,” and that made you squirm. He licked his bottom lip, not helping your situation.

His fingers wrapped around the hem of your tank top, pulling it up. You leaned forward, letting him pull the shirt over your head. You moved so you were laying beneath him in a bra and a long skirt, and he couldn’t keep his eyes or hands off you. You closed your eyes, taking in the sensation of his fingers trailing over your torso, for a minute not caring how you looked. He kissed your neck, gently biting here and there. Then his face traveled down, following the path laid by his hands.

His hands grabbed your hips roughly before he moved to the waistband of your skirt. He kissed your ribs then trailed kisses down to the center of your stomach, just below your belly button. You wriggled under his touch and felt smile against your skin. He glanced up at you, seeing your head thrown back and your eyes closed. You moved one of your hands to his hair, twisting and pulling gently. He let a small groan come from his lips and you couldn’t contain your smile. You looked down at him, meeting his gaze.

Pulling his face back up to yours, you kissed him like you’d never kissed anyone before. Your fingers moved across his jawline to his neck, then to his chest. You pushed your hand against the broad, muscular, still-clothed surface. Fumbling slightly, you managed to undo the buttons on his flannel, revealing a t-shirt underneath. It was one of his Always Keep Fighting shirts, and you brushed your hand over the words, then beamed up at him. He returned your smile, reaching up and pulling the shirt over her head.

“Much better.” Your hands grazed over his chest and back, finally feeling - and seeing - what you’d be dreaming about all night.

He nodded and hummed in agreement, watching your eyes drift across his body. He ducked his head down and kissed you hard. You were shocked by the roughness, but couldn’t help but enjoy it. Your favorite feeling was the scratching of his beard against your lips and face. Your hands moved down his back, feeling his muscles move as he did. You didn’t mean to, but you moaned against his lips, setting him off again.

His kisses became deeper, his tongue clashing against your lips and tongue. You were desperate for some type of friction between your legs, and you arched yourself into his thigh, moaning again.

“You know what you want, don’t you?” His grin was so mischievous, turning you on more, if that was even possible.

“Jared.” You whimpered his name, begging him not to stop.

“Yes, baby?” He kissed your neck, sucking a little too hard. You knew you’d have to work a little harder to cover that with makeup.

“Please.” You couldn’t think enough to form sentences; only single words came from your mouth. They came in breaths and moans, but they were all you needed to get your point across.

His hands shot down to the top of your skirt, pulling greedily, grabbing your underwear in the process. He worked them down your legs and threw them across the room. You giggled and he smirked back at you. He sat up on his knees, fumbling for the button of his jeans. He found it and slid the pants down his legs. Your eyes took everything in, lingering on the bulge under his briefs. He smiled, knowing exactly what you were staring at.

“You’re drooling.” He chuckled while he began leaning down and kissing your thigh.

“Do you blame me…” You lost yourself in the feeling of his lips on your skin again.

His kisses were soft against your leg, and he trailed them all the way back up your body until he brushed them against your lips once more.

“I cannot wait for this.” He whispered, and you shivered against the warmth on your neck.

“Jare, please.” You arched again, this time hitting the bulge you were previously mesmerized by.

You gasped and moaned, making him smile. Your hands slid down his sides, gripping the elastic around his hips. You pushed the fabric down, and his hands moved to meet yours. He finished removing his briefs effortlessly. When he came back to kissing you, you felt him pressing against you, rocking his hips back and forth ever so slightly. He grinned into your kisses as he felt you wriggling under him and heard the small moans and deep breaths coming from you.

You were driving him crazy and you didn’t even know it. You were wrapped up in your own pleasure, but he was determined to show you how beautiful he thought you were.

“[Y/N], you are so incredible.” His statement was littered with kisses.

You scoffed, but continued kissing him.

“I mean it. You’re beautiful.” He brushed hair away from your face and kissed you. You moved your hips up into him, pressing yourself against him much harder than before. He groaned. “So.  _Fucking._ Beautiful.”

You bit your lip and smiled, knowing what you’d done. He couldn’t hold himself back anymore. He reached down between the two of you, lining himself up. When he pushed into you, you were the one who couldn’t hold anything back. The gasps and moans and - screams?  _That was new_ \- fell out of your mouth. The feeling of him inside you was enough to make you climax almost immediately, but you held yourself together for at least a few minutes. The sounds coming from you mixed with his name falling from your lips and how incredible you felt around him sent Jared over the edge sooner than he would’ve liked, but you had already finished, so he decided it was alright.

He moved next to you, his eyes never leaving your face. He leaned over to kiss you and you smiled just as his lips met yours. You sighed and laid your head on the pillow, facing him. He smiled back at you, and you took it as an invitation to put your head on his chest. Jared’s arm wrapped around you and pulled you closer. He felt goosebumps on your arm and pulled the blankets up over the two of you. His lips pressed against your forehead and you sighed again, moving even closer to him. 

“Are you sure I’m not dreaming?” You whispered, closing your eyes.

“If you are, please don’t wake up.” His tone matched yours as he smoothed your hair and moved his hand to your arm, tracing invisible shapes.

It’d been a long time since you’d slept next to anyone, but this was the best feeling you’d ever had. You were curled up with Jared Padalecki. Your biggest celebrity crush was laying with his arm around you, and he’d just made love to you. That wasn’t fucking - that was barely even sex. He was so gentle, even for being such a big guy. You thought back to the pictures you’d taken earlier and how happy you were to be with him in them, and right now. He was the only person who could make you smile the way you did. You knew what you thought earlier was true. You loved him for the way he made you feel, the way he cared about you so much already. You loved him. You fell asleep almost instantly, with a smile still plastered on your face, listening to the sound of his breathing and his heart beating.

Jared smiled down at you, pressing a kiss into your hair and linking your pinky finger with his as you snored quietly. He stifled a small laugh and closed his eyes. He wasn’t sure how this would go, with you being a fan, but he didn’t care in this moment. He didn’t have a care in the world with you in his arms. He knew morning would come too soon - hell, it was morning now - but he wanted to enjoy every minute he had with you. He was even contemplating staying for the rest of the week. He’d make that decision after he slept. For now, he just wanted to hold you, silently making you feel how truly incredible and beautiful he thought you were, making you aware of how much he loved you.


	5. Falling

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Reader has a nightmare and Jared is there to help.

You woke up hyperventilating. Your sleep was peaceful until the nightmare hit you. When your eyes opened, you sat up quickly, forgetting that Jared’s arm was over you. The sudden movement caused him to stir.

“[Y/N]?” He grumbled sleepily.

You panicked even more, not expecting to hear his gruff voice in the darkness. Then, your mind flashed back to the previous night and you remembered falling asleep with your head on his chest.

“Jared.” You whimpered and held your head in your hands, tears flowing steadily.

“Hey, what is it? What happened?” He sat up and placed his hand on your cheek, wiping away tears with his thumb.

You couldn’t respond. Sobs wracked your body as Jared wrapped his arms around you. His hand rubbed over your back, trying to calm you down. His voice was quiet in your ear, telling you that it was fine, that he was there with you, and that whatever happened was over now. After what felt like forever, you lifted your face to look into his eyes. They were so full of kindness, and you knew you would never understand why he was so genuinely sweet to you.

“It was a nightmare.” Your voice was soft, raspy from crying.

“What happened? Talk to me, [Y/N].” Jared brushed damp strands of hair off of your face and looked deeply into your eyes.

“I watched it. I saw him kill himself.” Your voice broke and tears streamed down your cheeks again, despite Jared’s attempt to catch them.

Worry flooded Jared’s face. He knew you meant your best friend, - the one you’d told him about in the letter, the reason for the tattoo - and he knew how much you were still hurting.

“Oh, oh baby. Come here.” He pulled you into his arms, his legs on either side of you.

He was enveloping you in himself, doing everything he possibly could to make you feel safe. You didn’t know tears were threatening to spill over in his eyes. His jaw clenched as he looked down at you, falling apart in his arms. He felt so much for you - sympathy, empathy, compassion. To him, you were so strong, even when you felt weak, especially in moments like these. He felt your breath catching when you cried. Hyperventilation was coming again, he knew that much.

You buried your face in his chest, somehow wishing he was wearing a shirt for you to grip on to. Your arms snaked around his torso, holding him as tightly as you could, searching for comfort.

“Jare - I wa- watched him. Saw him sh- shoot himse- elf.” Desperate gasps for air littered your words.

“Shh, take a deep breath. It wasn’t real. None of that was real, baby.” His hand smoothed your hair and you felt his lips against your forehead.

You shook your head, trying to rid your mind of the images it had conjured up in your sleep. Words couldn’t express how thankful you were for Jared being there tonight of all nights. You’d never had this nightmare before. All your dreams about the friend you’d lost had been good ones - ones where you got to hug him again and hear his voice. This was so different. You saw his face contorted with sadness and heard him crying, and then you watched as he pulled a gun from the drawer next to his bed. He lifted it to his head, pulled the trigger, and then you woke up.

Your cries became louder as you remembered what you dreamed. Jared began rocking gently, trying anything he could to calm you down, even just a little. He whispered the sweetest things, saying he would be there any time you needed him, telling you how much he cared about you.

It took a long time, - the sun peeked through the closed curtains of your bedroom by the time your crying ceased - but Jared managed to hold you until you were calm. He continued to hold you, even after you were done crying. Your breathing was still ragged, and he knew that meant the crying was still a threat; it could start again at any moment.

“I’m okay.” You whispered into his neck, answering an unspoken question.

He nodded, but his grip on you didn’t loosen in the slightest. His hand moved up and down your upper arm, still trying to sooth the once panicked girl you had been. You pulled your face away from his skin and looked up at him.

“Jared?” You couldn’t bring yourself to speak very loudly, your voice barely audible.

He hummed and looked down at you.

“Thank you.” You stretched up and gave him a small kiss.

He smiled sadly and nodded again, pulling you back into his never-faltering embrace. It was almost like he was afraid to let go of you, like you would break and crumble if he wasn’t holding you together.

_Maybe that was true._

Your eyelids grew heavy, and your body was exhausted, but you were afraid to sleep - afraid to rewatch the scene that unfolded during your last slumber. Against your thoughts, you relaxed against Jared’s body, letting him support your slumped figure. The tiredness of your body took over your mind.

“Hey, go to sleep. I’ll be here.” He pressed a gentle kiss to your forehead and then pulled your head against him with his hand.

You hummed and nodded slightly, allowing yourself to close your eyes. You felt Jared moving, laying down and taking you with him. He managed to keep his arms around you the entire time he moved - something else you’d never understand.

You drifted into a fitful and restless sleep, only feeling safe when you woke enough to realize Jared was holding you.

* * *

It felt like a short nap, but when you woke up fully and looked at the clock, your eyes grew wide.

Jared had managed to fall asleep, but again, your sudden movements woke him quickly.

“What? What’s wrong?” He sounded panicked and worried.

“We slept so late. Jared, I had work today!” You started to sit up and get out of bed.

“I called them earlier. Told them you had to deal with something and that you couldn’t come in. Your boss seemed nice enough about it.” He shrugged and pulled you back to him. “Think of it as a vacation.” His smile tugged lightly on the corners of his mouth, barely revealing a dimple.

“When did you - how did you - what?” You were shocked that he had thought to do that.

“Don’t worry about it. I kind of left them hanging on a return date for you. Said we weren’t sure how long it would take to handle this.” He rubbed the back of his neck nervously.

“Jared, I have to go to work. As much as I would love to stay here and do nothing all day, I have to make money. This place doesn’t afford itself.” You chuckled. “As much as I would love to stay here, especially with you…” You trailed off as your mind wandered.

“Just stay with me until I have to go back.” He gave you his character’s signature puppy dog face, begging you to approve.

“Fine.” You sighed and rolled your eyes. “And don’t use that Sam-puppy-shit on me!” You managed to laugh, despite how terrible your morning had been.

Jared’s phone rang from across the room. He groaned and nuzzled his face into the crook of your neck.

“Do I have to?” He whined into your skin.

“Go get it. It might be Jay.” You smiled when you called Jensen by the familiar name.

He groaned again, kissed you quickly, and stood to get his phone. You were surprised by his naked body slinking across your bedroom. You’d figured in his responsible state of calling your boss, he had also taken the liberty of putting pants on - you were wrong, and not complaining.

“Hey, what’s up?” He answered the phone and turned to look at you.

Your eyes widened at the sight of the front of him naked, and you felt a blush creep across your cheeks. He smiled at you knowingly.

“Yeah, about that… Tell Cliff he’s on vacation.” He paused and waited for a response. “At least until the end of the weekend. You are, too, man. Enjoy the time off.” He winked at you, and you immediately knew the next few days were going to be fun.

Jared hung up the phone and put it back on your dresser where it had been. He sauntered back to the bed, grinning at you the whole time. It didn’t occur to you that, because he was naked, you probably were too. You didn’t realize it until you felt his hand run up your entire leg before resting on your hip. Your eyes widened and you quickly stood to find clothes.

“Here.” He chuckled and tossed you his flannel shirt from the night before.

You smiled, gladly accepted it and pulled it on, leaving the top two buttons undone. You chose to wear it with just underwear. You’d seen it in movies and on TV, so you thought you’d give the whole “morning-after, cute girl” thing a try. 

Pulling your hair into a messy bun, you turned and looked at him.

“You just gonna lay there all day or are we gonna actually  _do_ things on this little vacation of yours?” You smirked and raised an eyebrow at him.

“I’m fine with either, really.” He shot you a devilish grin.

You scoffed and turned, leaving the room and heading for the kitchen. Just a few seconds after, you heard his bare feet padding toward you down the hallway. You spun right before he reached you, and his arms flew around your waist. He hoisted you up and spun you around as you giggled.

_You could really get used to this._

_“_ God, you’re adorable.” He chuckled as he placed your feet back on the floor.

He bent to kiss you as you rolled your eyes at his previous statement.

“Whatever you say, Padalecki.” You mumbled after he broke the kiss.

You turned on your heel and walked toward the kitchen. Jared followed closely.

“Breakfast or lunch?” You checked the clock then opened the refrigerator.

“Hmm, whatever you’d like. But I’m cooking.” He gently pushed you away from the fridge and gave you his best smile.

“Let me help, at least. You don’t know your way around my kitchen.” You stuck your tongue out, teasingly.

“At least I can reach all the shelves.” He put a hand on his hip and imitated you from the night before, on tip toes and still unable to reach the top.

You laughed and rolled your eyes again - something you’d been doing a lot around him, but never out of annoyance.

“I pick breakfast.” You grabbed eggs from the refrigerator after ducking under his arm to retrieve them.

“Perfect. I love breakfast.” He pulled the carton of orange juice from the top shelf and opened it, drinking from it without a cup.

Your eyes went wide as he made himself perfectly at home in your kitchen. He held the carton out to you and laughed.

“Oh, I’m sorry, did you want some?” His innocent expression made you laugh out loud.

You grabbed the carton from him in a quick motion and took a cup from the cabinet. After pouring some into the glass, you handed the carton back to him.

“The rest is yours. Looks like I’ll be making an extra grocery trip this week. I didn’t know I’d be feeding a Sasquatch - I’m unprepared!” You clapped a hand over your mouth in fake surprise.

Jared laughed and quickly began making breakfast for the two of you. He scrambled the eggs, cooked the bacon perfectly, and even made chocolate chip pancakes. You set the table and pulled the syrup from the cabinet before sitting at the table.

“C’mon, Jare. Your food is gonna get cold.” You beckoned from the dining room for him to join you.

He turned the corner with a plate in his hand. You were confused because both of your plates were already on the table and he told you he was cleaning a little before he sat down. He smiled as he put the plate in front of you.

“My God, you are the cheesiest person I know.” You couldn’t hold back your laughter when you saw the attempt at a heart-shaped pancake.

“Hey, I tried my best!” He stomped a foot and crossed his arms over his chest.

“I love it.” You put a hand on his forearm and smiled at him. “Sit.” You nodded to the empty chair.

He sat down and the two of you enjoyed a quiet breakfast - or maybe lunch - together.

* * *

After breakfast, you and Jared went back to the kitchen to clean up the huge mess he had made. You laughed when you saw the counter covered in flour, but then an idea sparked in your head. You went over to the white dust and casually leaned on the countertop, covering your hands in the mess.

Walking over to Jared, you kept your hands behind your back, stretched up on your toes and kissed him. When you deepened the kiss, you also pulled your hands out from behind you and smacked them on to Jared’s ass, leaving two bright white handprints standing out against his black sweatpants. He hummed excitedly into the kiss when you smacked him, but when you started laughing, he pulled away.

“What? What did I do?” He seemed so embarrassed and confused.

“N- nothing. Turn around.” You could hardly make out words through your laughter.

When you saw the prints, another wave of laughter crashed over you. He turned his head over his shoulder and caught a glimpse of the white marks.

“Oh, you’re so dead.” He pushed his hand into the flour on the counter and chased you around the kitchen.

You squealed as you ran from him, and because of his ridiculously long legs, it didn’t take him long to catch you. He wrapped his arm around your chest, planting his flour-covered hand firmly around your breast.

“Gotcha!” He pulled you closer to him so your back was against his chest.

“Almost. This is  _your_ shirt.” You laughed again, just as hard as the first time. 

He huffed in defeat and slung his other arm around you, joining the first one which had fallen to your waist.

“Worth it.” He sighed into your neck before pressing kisses from just behind your ear down to your shoulder.

You pushed yourself back against him and sighed happily, leaning the back of your head against his shoulder. It’d been a long time since you were this happy, since you’d laughed this hard or smiled this much or had this much fun. 

“Jared?”

He hummed against your skin in response and continued kissing you, waiting for you to speak again.

“I’m falling for you.” Your voice was just above a whisper, but he heard you.

Jared spun you around and pulled you back to him. You looked up into his beautiful eyes as he leaned down to kiss you.

“Trust me, I’m falling harder.” He mumbled his words between kisses, and you felt your heart flutter and start pounding in your chest as you smiled.


	6. Behind The Lie

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Reader’s past comes up. She spends some time with Jared and Jensen, and during that time, Jared makes an announcement.

Your first full day with Jared was fun and exciting, but also exhausting. Around 2pm, you had fallen asleep with your head on Jared’s lap as the two of you watched the best movie Netflix had to offer. He sat on the couch, just listening to you breathe while his hands traveled lightly across your skin. A smile spread on his face and never faltered. When you began stirring and groaning quietly, he ran his fingers through your hair.

“Mm, feels good.” You smiled, not even letting your eyes crack open.

His smile grew, but quickly faded when you stretched and he caught a glimpse of a pretty big scar on your left side.

“Whoa, what is that?” His brow furrowed. “Why didn’t I notice that last night?” Jared caught your hand before you could put your arm down.

Your eyes went wide when you realized what he was talking about. He moved his other hand so that his fingers could trace over the scar.

“[Y/N], what  _is_  this?” He sounded worried.

“It’s nothing, Jare. I was riding my bike when I was younger and I fell into a huge rose bush. The thorns got me pretty bad… Obviously.” You let out a nervous chuckle.

“A  _flower_  did this to you?” His eyebrows were raised in confusing and disbelief.

You nodded.

“Why do you think I don’t like roses?” You gave him a small smile.

“Just thought it was because they’re cliche. I’m sorry for asking like that. It was rude…” He looked down and shook his head.

“It’s fine, Jare. You would’ve found out eventual-” Your stopped yourself and your eyes slowly widened, realizing what you’d said.

You had actually said  _out loud_  that you were expecting this to go farther. How could you have been so stupid? Jared noticed the change in your demeanor and started laughing.

“Hey, relax. This-” He motioned between the two of you. “-isn’t over after today. You think this was a one night stand?” He gripped your shoulder and pulled you to a sitting position, facing him.

You hadn’t let your eyes meet his. A furious blush crept across your face as you shook your head, mentally kicking yourself.

“[Y/N]. Look at me. You weren’t just one night. You are already so much more to me than that. I’ve barely known you for a week, just  _really_  got to know you yesterday, but I’ve never felt like this before. Every time you smile, my heart starts beating faster. Do you have any idea how beautiful that smile is? And your  _eyes_? Don’t even get me started on your eyes, baby.” He hadn’t stopped smiling since he started talking, and his hand was cupping your cheek.

Your blush deepened at his words. You couldn’t believe this was happening. Jared Padalecki was telling you that you were beautiful. The most  _perfect_ man in the world saw you in a light no one else had before. You couldn’t stand the guilt bubbling inside you.

“Jared…” You sighed. “I need to be honest with you. And um, thank you.” You gave him a small smile.

“Honest about what?” His face scrunched in confusion.

“The - the scar. Jare, it was him. My ex-boyfriend, not a rose bush…” You dropped your eyes again.

Jared went from shocked to seething with anger within three seconds.

“He - he did this to you?” He dropped his hand to your ribs and ran a feather-light touch over your scar. “How?” 

“Long story… Short version? He’s a dick. We got in a fight and I kind of got thrown into the edge of a mirror. It got me pretty good.” You shrugged.

“Are you  _fucking_  kidding me.” Jared grumbled under his breath, not wanting you to hear the rage in his voice.

You looked at his hands and noticed them shaking in his lap. You grabbed both of his hands and pulled yourself on to his legs. Throwing his arms around your body and placing your hands on either side of his face, you leaned in and kissed him passionately. When you pulled away, you felt tears running down your cheeks and noticed them in his eyes as well, threatening to spill over the edge.

“I’ve never told anyone that before.” You admitted quietly.

“Can’t say that anymore.” Jared chuckled, wiping his eyes.

You kissed him again, then moved to stand. His strong arms pulled you back against his chest as his lips crashed into yours.

“I love that you trust me.” He backed out of the kiss and rubbed his thumb in circles on your lower back.

You smiled and leaned forward, laying your head in the crook of his neck.

“Thank you for being here. Between the nightmare and now this… I don’t know why you stayed. I’m a disaster, Jare. And here you are, holding me together, picking up my million shattered pieces.” You trailed your finger over the fabric of his shirt.

“No matter how many pieces you’re in, I want to be the one to help you glue them back together.” He wrapped his large hand around yours as you gripped his shirt and kissed his neck.

You spent most of the afternoon curled up on his lap while he flipped through the channels. You didn’t care what was on television, you just wanted to be with Jared like this forever.

* * *

“Hey, the new episode is on tonight! Call Jensen, I’ll make us dinner. I have a bunch of beer in the fridge in the basement. We’re having a watch party.” You threw Jared’s phone to him and waved your hand for him to make the call.

“Yes, ma’am!” He saluted you in jest.

You laughed and shook your head as you returned to the kitchen to start prepping the food for dinner. From the kitchen, you heard Jared say, “Yes, I’m sure. She insists. Just come over in a couple hours.” He hung up the phone and joined you in the kitchen.

“Need help?” His arms laced around your waist as he nuzzled his face into your hair.

“I need you to stop distracting me so I can get this done,” you said with a teasing tone.

“Well, I told Jensen to come over in a few hours. We’ve got time.” His fingers slipped under your shirt as his lips found the sensitive skin of your neck.

“Jared, c’mon, let me finish getting this stuff cut up at least.” You tried not to let him get to you, but your best efforts were failing.

“Fine, but I’m not moving.” His grip on your waist tightened.

You shook your head, laughing lightly as you sliced the carrots. Once the rest of your veggies were chopped, you turned to face Jared. He didn’t waste a second capturing your lips in a searing kiss. You reached up and wrapped your arms around his neck.

“We don’t have much time.” Jared mumbled against your lips.

“Then don’t waste any.” You kissed him with more urgency.

He nodded and broke the kiss, leading you to the bedroom. He kicked the bedroom door shut, needlessly as you laid on the bed after removing your own shirt and sweatpants. Jared stalked toward you, losing his clothes as he walked, coming over you when he finally got to the bed. His lips met yours again and the feeling of his chest against yours made you feel lightheaded.

He kissed down your jaw and nibbled at your collarbone, drawing moans from your lips. Jared reached around behind you and quickly unhooked your bra. Once the hook was undone, he ripped the bra off your arms and threw it on the floor. His mouth closed around your nipple, his tongue swirling around the sensitive bud. You moaned his name, causing his eyes to flick up to meet yours. The desire within his hazel orbs made the heat between your legs grow even more.

His teeth grazed the peak of your breast as he pulled away, moving to repeat the process with the other one. You brought a hand to run through his hair, massaging his scalp as you tugged lightly. The action urged him to kiss his way down your body, his hands gripping your hips and holding you to the bed.

His lips hit the fabric of your underwear and you tried to arch your back. He pressed on your hips harder, and you knew it would leave bruises. The thought made you shudder, sucking in a breath through your teeth. Jared heard you and stopped immediately.

“I’m so sorry. God, I’m an idiot. Baby, I’m so sorry…” He moved back up and hovered over you again, eyes closed as he shook his head.

“It - it’s okay.” You didn’t even believe yourself.

Jared moved and laid next to you, covering his eyes with his hand. The other hand was searching frantically for yours. When he found it, he intertwined his fingers with yours and squeezed tightly.

“I promise it won’t happen again. The last thing I want to do is hurt you, [Y/N].” He moved his hand from his eyes and rolled so he was facing you.

You were laying on your back, eyes closed, but tears still slipped out and ran down the sides of your face. 

“I know, Jare.” You nodded, eyes still clamped shut.

His eyes drifted down your body and landed on the scar he’d found earlier. He lifted a single finger and traced the mark over your ribs. You flinched, curling away from his touch.

“Hey, it’s okay. I’m not going to hurt you - ever. Let me show you what love is supposed to feel like.” He didn’t stop moving his finger over your scar.

You opened your eyes, meeting his gaze. You nodded slowly, swallowing hard.

“Show me love, Jared.” You whispered.

He smiled and leaned over to kiss you gently. Just like the night before, he moved slowly, intent on letting you know he wouldn’t dream of hurting you like your last boyfriend did. More gently than just moments before, he moved back down your body. His kisses were light, his lips barely ghosting your skin, but your body was almost painfully aware of his actions.

When he reached your underwear again, his fingers slipped under the elastic and slowly pulled them down your legs. His lips followed their path, kissing down the inside of your right leg. You let your head fall back and sighed, a smile on your face. Once your lacy panties hit the floor, he trailed back up your legs, leaving kisses in his wake. His breath ghosted over the apex of your thighs, causing a shiver to run up your spine.

“Jared, please.” Your words were begging him to keep going.

He hummed, a small laugh audible through it. Then, he pressed a kiss to your core. You jumped at the sudden contact. He flicked out his tongue and ran it in circles around your clit. Your fingers tangled in his hair as you moaned. His mouth was relentless against you. One strong hand gripped your thigh as the other slid closer to your aching center.

Jared’s tongue went flat against you, pressing perfectly against the bundle of nerves. He held his tongue still, pulsing it on your clit as he slowly pushed a single finger into you. You tightened around it, wishing it was  _him._

“M- more,” you swiveled your hips, fucking yourself on his finger.

He was quick to add another finger, gently curling them inside you as he began moving his tongue again. The combination made you feel high. His fingers pumped in and out while he alternated between licking and lightly sucking your clit. It wasn’t long before his skillful mouth pushed you over the edge.

He became even more gentle, moving more slowly, working you down from your orgasm. As you were basking in your afterglow, he moved back up the bed, planting a hand on either side of your head before ducking down and kissing you sweetly.

“Get on your back, Jared. I need you.” You placed a hand on his chest.

He shook his head.

“This was about you.  _That’s_ what love should feel like. Slow, gentle, consuming.” He kissed you again. “You deserve all that and so much more.” His forehead leaned against yours and looked into your eyes.

“Jared, I-” You were cut off by the ringing of the doorbell.

Jared sprung out of bed, grabbing his clothes and pulling them back on. You rushed to your dresser and opened the top drawer, choosing a new pair of underwear and a more comfortable bra. Once you were both dressed, you went to the door.

“Jare? Go downstairs and grab the beer?” You called over your shoulder.

He shrugged and walked down to your basement. You flung the door open as your fingers combed through your hair. Jensen’s eyes widened slightly and he chuckled. He opened his arms to hug you. You stepped into his embrace, thanking him for coming.

“Thanks for offering to cook. Ate takeout all day yesterday.” He groaned and rubbed his stomach.

Jared walked into the living room, a case of Jensen’s favorite beer in one hand and a bottle of wine in the other.

“Hey, I didn’t say you could dig into my stash!” You snatched the bottle of wine from his hand and tucked it under your arm.

“You drink that stuff, sweetheart?” Jensen pointed to the beer before taking it from Jared.

“No uh,  _I_ don’t.” You looked at the floor, suddenly feeling awkward.

Jared’s arm went around your waist and he pulled you into his side under his arm. You happily accepted the comfort you found in him.

“Kitchen is right around the corner, Jay. Wanna put the beer in the fridge? Here, take this too.” Jared held the wine bottle out to Jensen, urging him to leave the room momentarily.

Once Jensen was gone, Jared turned to face you, hand still on your hip.

“You alright? That was his, wasn’t it?” He was talking about the beer.

You nodded.

“I’m - I’m okay. Just hard to bring all of this to the surface again. Let me go start dinner. It’ll distract me.” You stretched up and pecked his lips before going to the kitchen.

Jensen turned the corner with a glass of wine in his hand.

“Sorry, I figured you could-” He started.

You took the glass from him and downed its contents within seconds.

“Thank you. Don’t apologize. My house is your house.” You smiled and quickly made your way into the kitchen.

Jensen gave Jared a confused look, to which Jared responded by shaking his head, silently telling Jensen he would tell him later. Jensen passed Jared a beer and they sat on opposite couches, channel surfing until you were done cooking.

* * *

“Dinner’s ready!” You poked your head around the corner, smiling.

You’d been drinking and cooking with the wine Jared brought up. To be honest, you were pretty drunk by the time the food was done. Jared noticed the red in your cheeks and knew the night would be interesting. You sat the food on the table, serving it family style. When you sat, you had a glass of wine in front of your plate. As you reached for it, Jared snatched it up and pulled it away from you.

“No more of this for now. Some water, maybe?” He slid a glass of water toward you.

“You’re not fun.” You pouted.

Jensen laughed watching the two of you interact. He could see Jared was happy, so he was thankful to you for that. The three of you ate, making small talk throughout the meal. After dinner, Jensen offered to do the dishes. You accepted his offer, taking the time to relax on the couch. Jared stayed in the kitchen with Jensen, drying the dishes as they were cleaned.

“A girl could get used to this.” You called from your spot in the living room, hearing sarcastic laughs in response. “You two almost done out there? Almost show time!” You flipped your television to the CW network.

Three minutes later, they both walked around the corner to find you curled up under a blanket. Jared sat next to you and wrapped his arm around you. You moved and laid your head on him, humming contentedly and smiling.

The show started, and the guys pulled out their phones, almost in perfect sync with one another.

“You livestreaming?” Jared turned to Jensen.

“Yeah. You?” Jensen nodded.

Jared shrugged and opened the facebook app on his phone. He tapped the live button in the top corner, beginning his video. Your phone dinged across the room as you got the notification that both celebrities were live.

“Well, that’s embarrassing.” You blushed.

“Cute.” Jared winked at you before his stream started. “Hey y’all!” He waved at his phone. “New episode starts right now where I am! I’ll be streaming as long as I can, but I’ll warn you, I’m watching with this fool.” He smiled and turned the camera so the viewers could see the back of Jensen’s head.

One of the comments was asking where he was because the house looked adorable.

“Oh! Where am I? I’m um…” He rubbed the back of his neck. “I’m at my girlfriend’s house. She made us dinner tonight and now we’re having a watch party.” He grinned, showing his dimples to his fans.

The stream exploded with people asking what he was talking about, he didn’t have a girlfriend, asking when it happened and who she was. Everyone was freaking out, and you just sat there in shock. He’d just told his entire fandom that you were his girlfriend. Was that his way of asking you? Your eyes were wide as you stared at the floor.

After about four minutes, Jared decided that he actually wanted to watch the episode with you. He said goodbye to his viewers, and Jensen followed suit. The three of you spent the rest of the episode watching intently. As scenes wrapped and commercials came on, you couldn’t help but ask them what it was like filming the episode. 

Jared’s phone started ringing. He glanced at the caller ID and groaned.

“It’s my publicist. Shit. Probably about the girlfriend thing.” He grimaced.

“Yeah, about that…?” You raised an eyebrow at him.

“You wanna?” He smiled at you and shrugged.

“Of course I want to.” You smiled back and kissed him.

“I should answer this. Time to get screamed at.” He rolled his eyes and walked back into your bedroom. “Hello?”

His voice was muffled, but you could still make out the words he was saying.

“No, we - she’s not - last weekend at the convention. Listen, she’s a fan, but she’s not one of those girls. We -  _listen,_ Marcy. This is happening. I’m in love, and you’re not taking that away from me.” His tone sounded harsh.

Jensen’s eyes shot to you when you both heard what Jared had said.


	7. Past Mistakes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You confront Jared about what he told his publicist, and when your past comes knocking on your door, things take a turn for the worse.

Your eyes grew wide at Jared’s words. He just told his publicist he was in love with you.

“Jay, did he-” You started.

Jensen nodded quickly in response.

“I’m gonna head home. You two should talk this over by yourselves.” He picked his jacket up off the back of the chair and pulled it on.

You looked at the floor until you felt Jensen’s hand on your shoulder and saw his feet right in front of yours.

“Hey, it’s gonna be fine. He means things when he says them.” Jensen pulled you into a hug.

“How did I get so lucky? I’ve gotta be the  _luckiest_  girl on the planet. I have Jared Padalecki telling people he’s in love with me, Jensen Ackles reassuring me that Jared actually does, and I cooked dinner for both of you tonight.” You laughed into his shirt while he hugged you.

“Lotta girls are out for your head.” He winked and stepped toward the door. “Really, [Y/N], Jared doesn’t say things he doesn’t mean. If he told Marcy he’s in love with you, he  _is.”_ Jensen smiled at you before opening the door.

“Thanks, Jay. Be safe.” You walked to the door and watched from the doorway as he walked toward his car, closing the door when he started the engine.

As you turned and walked back in, you could hear Jared’s voice booming as he yelled at Marcy. You peeked around the corner slowly, gazing down the hallway toward your bedroom where Jared was.

“Listen, I’m taking a break from filming for a little while. I don’t know how long yet, but I need to get away from it for a bit. I’ll call you when I decide I’m up for it again, kay?” His phone slammed onto the dresser, not letting her answer as he hung up.

You huffed and leaned back against the wall, eyes closed, preparing yourself to talk to Jared about what he’d said. You weren’t ready for this - for being in love with someone again. While your eyes were closed, Jared walked to you almost silently. His lips crashed against yours, his fingers digging into your hips. You squirmed at the action, both out of pleasure and because of his roughness. He pulled away long enough for you to protest.

“Jared…” Your voice had the smallest hint of panic behind it.

“Fuck, I did it again.” He ripped his hands from your body as he pulled away, turning and walking away from you.

“Jare, wait.” You reached out and grabbed his sleeve, pulling him back to you.

“No, I just did the  _exact_  thing I promised you I never would. I can’t stand to think of hurting you.” He was being hard on himself, and you wanted to make it stop.

“Hey, no. You didn’t hurt me. You  _won’t_ hurt me. I know that. Look at me.” You cupped his face. “I heard what you said on the phone in there. You’re in love with me?” You blushed and bit your lip.

“I - you heard that?” His eyes went wide and he blushed.

“I heard it.” You nodded, a smile pulling your lips upward. “And… and I’m a little skeptical, but - but I think I’m-” You were cut off.

His lips were pressed against yours again.

“Don’t say it. I don’t need you to say it. I know you don’t want - you’re not ready to open yourself up to anyone just yet.” His eyes locked on yours.

“How did you - Jared, you took the words out of my mouth. Ever since him - since Corey - I’ve been… terrified to let someone in. I gave him my  _world_  for seven years. Planned my life around him, was actually…  _really_  excited when I thought I was pregnant with his baby, and then he just - he left.” You tried to shrug it off but tears gathered in your eyes.

“He was an idiot. An asshole. You’re worth so much more, and  _deserve_  so much more, [Y/N].” His hands held your face, the pads of his thumbs wiping the tears from under your eyes. “I swear to you - pinky promise you,” he removed one hand from your cheek and raised his smallest finger, giving you a little grin and causing you to giggle, “that I will  _never_ do that to you. I will never hurt you, never leave you, never let you wonder if I still love you. Because, damn it, I love you, [Y/N].” A small laugh broke through his words.

“I love you too, Jared.” You whispered, looking down.

His eyes widened at your words. He wasn’t even sure how you’d react to hearing him say it, so saying it back was the last thing he expected. His lips crashed into yours, molding to yours perfectly. He barely pulled away, but it was long enough for you to duck out from between his arms.

“Hey! Where do you think you’re going?” He reached out for you, missing when he grabbed for your shirt. “Get back here.” He laughed, chasing you into the kitchen.

You had jumped up on the island, sitting on the cold countertop with your legs dangling off the edge. Jared turned the corner and smiled when he saw you sitting there, obviously waiting for him. He stepped toward you, pushing your legs apart with his hips, and leaned down to kiss you again. His arm wrapped around you and pulled your chest against his as his lips worked in time with yours. Before you had time to think, you felt him lifting you off the island. Your legs wrapped around his waist and he moved to push you against the wall.

Your hands tangled in his hair as your tongue prodded at his lower lip. You felt his hand on your thigh, moving up toward your hip, and you let a short and clipped moan escape your lips and vibrate off of Jared’s. He smiled, his teeth dragging along your lower lip. As you fumbled with the top button of his shirt, Jared’s phone started ringing from the other room. He groaned, spinning so he could put you back down on the island.

“Hold that thought.” He pecked your lips, smirking as he walked to get his phone.

You heard his muffled voice through the walls. As you sat there by yourself, you couldn’t help but get lost in your thoughts. 

_Jared Padalecki loved you. He told you he loved you, and you’d said it back. You hadn’t told anyone you loved them since your last boyfriend - the one you planned on marrying, the one who’d shoved and hit and thrown you more times than you cared to remember, the one who was nothing but a painful memory and a scar on your abdomen at this point. Corey was the past, a past you wished you could forget, but Jared was your future. You never dreamed you’d be able to say that, but he was just a few rooms over, impatiently having a conversation and wanting to get back to you._

A knock on the door pulled you from your thoughts. With a furrowed brow, as you weren’t expecting anyone, you hopped down and padded toward the door with bare feet. When you opened it just a crack, you yelped and pushed it shut as fast as you could. It didn’t close all the way, a shoe preventing the door from latching.

“What the  _fuck_  are you doing here?” You hissed, panic rising within you.

“Came by to see my girl. What a surprise when through the window, I saw another dude pinning her against the wall.” Corey’s slurred words told you he was drunk.

 _Great_.

Jared heard your earlier noise, and came to see what was going on. When he noticed the terror in your eyes, he grabbed your hand and pulled you to his side. The door swung open and he saw who he assumed was your ex-boyfriend. 

“Who the hell are you?” Jared and Corey spoke at the same time.

Jared scoffed, Corey rolled his eyes.

“I’m the father of her child - oh wait, no I’m not. Because she’s a fucking  _liar_ and tried to lure me into marrying her with a fake  _baby_.” Corey hissed, his voice full of venom.

He hated you, but he had the story all wrong. You  _did_ think you were pregnant, and the two of you had talked about marriage before that, so you didn’t think that making a suggestion to get married before the baby was born would do any harm. 

You shook your head, tears welling in your eyes again. Jared noticed the change in your demeanor, and tightened his arm around you. You looked up at him and saw the concern in his eyes.

“Are you two done eye-fucking each other right in front of me? Get off of her.” Corey reached for your arm, his fingers digging into your skin as he tried to pull you toward him.

You winced, a whimper escaping your lips. Jared didn’t let go of you, but neither did Corey. Jared used his free hand to take a swing at Corey, fist connecting with jaw. Corey’s face turned against the blow, then he laughed. It was a low, bone-chilling noise. His fingers dug deeper into your forearm, undoubtedly leaving marks in their wake. A choked sob fell from your mouth as you tried to stand your ground.

“What’s wrong, princess? Didn’t remember how I handled you?” Corey’s voice sent a shiver up your spine.

“Don’t touch her.” Jared’s harsh voice came from beside you.

Corey laughed loudly.

“Who’s this? Your big bad knight in shining armor?” He rolled his eyes.

You didn’t answer, just looked at the floor. This was exactly how you’d remembered Corey, and the last thing you ever wanted was to see him again.

“I said  _don’t_ touch her.” Jared’s hand wrapped around Corey’s wrist and he squeezed roughly.

Corey flinched and loosened his grip on you. You jerked your arm back to your chest, clutching it in your other hand and rubbing the red marks that you knew would soon turn to bruises. You felt tears running down your face, but couldn’t bring yourself to care enough to wipe them away.

“Go call Jensen.” Jared squeezed your shoulder and nodded when you glanced up at him.

Your eyes shifted between the two men before you stepped backwards and turned to leave the foyer. As you left, you heard skin colliding with skin again, along with cracking noises. Without even turning around, you knew Jared had broken Corey’s nose. You flinched as you fished your phone from your purse hanging in the hallway. A sigh of relief was drawn from you when Jensen answered.

“Jay? Hey, please come back.  _Now_.” The worry and anxiousness were evident in your voice.

“ _Whoa, take it easy. What’s going on?”_ His voice boomed through the speaker.

“I don’t have time to explain. Please, just hurry!” You tried to see around the corner, desperately hoping Jared was okay.

You heard grunts and groans coming from the foyer, and it scared you to think about the damage either man could do to the other. Sure, Corey broke your heart - and a few bones in a past life - but that didn’t mean you wanted him beaten to death.  _Or maybe you did…_

Jensen’s car pulled up as Corey crumpled on the floor.

“Fuck!” Jared hissed, holding his bloodied fist to his chest.

“Get in here. Let me see.” You pushed him toward the couch and kneeled in front of him, holding his hand in yours.

It was bad. Jared had broken at least one of his fingers, and his knuckles were gashed open, along with the swelling that came from the flesh colliding with bones.

“Damn it, Jare. You didn’t have to do that…” You stood.

“I did. He was hurting you… again.” Jared looked up at you.

“It’s okay, Jared. I-” You stopped as Jensen burst through the door.

“What the HELL?!” His eyes were wide as he looked from Corey to you and Jared.

“Long story. Help me get him in here?” You nodded toward Corey’s motionless body lying on your floor, blood falling from his nose onto the hardwood.

“Shit.” Jensen grumbled and went to get Corey.

He laid him across the larger couch, propping his head up on a pillow and looking to you expectantly.

“Oh. Let me get towels.” You rushed to the closet and grabbed three towels, wetting one of them with warm water and tossing the other two to Jensen. “This might hurt. You ready?” You knelt in front of Jared again, pulling his hand onto his knee.

You rubbed gently at the quickly drying blood, your eyes staying on Jared’s as you worked, pulling back when he winced and his muscles tightened.

“It’s okay, keep going.” Jared coaxed when you pulled away completely.

You nodded slowly and got back to work. Jensen watched you take care of Jared, pacing back and forth behind you.

“Could you…” You glanced at Jensen over your shoulder and waved your hand, motioning for him to go somewhere else.

He grunted and flopped down onto a chair in the adjoining dining room. Corey started stirring, and as you stood and stepped toward him, every muscle in Jared’s body tensed.

“It’s okay, Jare. I got it.” You held out a hand, a silent ‘stay put.’

His jaw clenched as he reluctantly settled back on the couch.

“What the hell…” Corey grumbled and groaned as he shifted.

“Hey, it’s alright. Listen, you’re probably still drunk, and I’m hoping to God you don’t remember this. You’re hurt pretty bad, okay?” You stopped and waited for a response, continuing only after he nodded slowly. “Let me fix you up?” You waited for a nod again. “Okay, good. This isn’t gonna feel nice. Ready?” Raising a clean and warm towel to his face, you pressed the fabric to the biggest gash.

He sucked a breath through his gritted teeth. You knew it hurt, and a sick twisted part of you kind of enjoyed it. As you worked on his head, you realized he probably needed stitches. He drifted back to sleep, so you stopped working, afraid of waking him again.

“We should take him to the hospital…” You turned and looked over your shoulder, up at Jensen.

He nodded, eyes taking in how deep the cuts on Corey’s face were.

“Can you drive?” You looked to Jensen again.

“Yeah. But uh…” His eyes flicked to Jared, who was unwaveringly staring at you, watching every move you were making with Corey.

“Jared?” You stood and walked back to him, sitting beside him on the couch.

He didn’t answer, his eyes just moved to meet yours.

“Jared. It’s okay.” You reached out and rested your hand on his forearm, causing him to jump.

“It’s not okay. This dickhead shows up and hurts you and it’s okay?! Now you’re helping him! What the hell, [Y/N]?” Jared snapped.

You recoiled, backing away from him, pulling your legs to your chest and wrapping your arms around them.

“Shit…” He hung his head, realizing what he’d done.  _Again_.

Jensen walked toward you, extending a hand. You took it and leaned into him as you stood. You couldn’t help the tears that flowed down your face. Jensen’s arms wrapped around your shoulders, holding you tight to him as he looked at Jared. Jared returned the look, silently apologizing and kicking himself for yelling at you. You weren’t the sensitive type, most of the time. But tonight, after your abusive ex-boyfriend showed up at your door, then Jared beat him bloody, Jared yelling at you was the straw that broke the metaphorical camel’s back. You were done. Cracking under the pressure, you let yourself sob into Jensen’s jacket.

“Hey, it’s alright. You wanna go outside?” Jensen smoothed your hair.

You nodded, not looking up at him, fearful of how pathetic you looked. He kept an arm draped over your shoulders, holding you close to him as the two of you headed outside. It was hard to explain how quickly you became comfortable with Jensen, but he returned the feeling. He was there for you, supporting you tonight, returning as soon as you called for him, helping you with anything and everything you asked for.

“Wanna talk about it?” His voice pulled you from your thoughts.

You shook your head, still not looking up at him.

“I figured. C’mon.” He sat down on the bench along your walkway.

“Thank you, Jay.” You whispered. “You didn’t have to come.”

“I didn’t have to. I wanted to. I could hear it in your voice, you needed someone.” His hand rubbed your upper arm soothingly.

You nodded, a whimper coming from your throat again.

“Hey, shh. Calm down.” Pulling you closer, he pressed his lips to the top of your head.

You did your best to do what he said, taking deep breaths and exhaling slowly. Jensen’s touch was helpful, the warmth he offered kept you warm despite the chilly air that whipped around you.

“We should get back inside before Jared tries to kill him again.” You mumbled, pulling your head off of Jensen’s chest just enough to look up at him.

“Good idea.” Jensen chuckled, his arm never leaving your shoulders, supplying you with a constant support.

The two of you stood and made your way back into the house. When you stepped inside, you noticed that both men were sleeping, so you sent up a silent thank you to anyone or anything listening.

“He really does need a hospital, you know.” Jensen was leaning over Corey, examining him once again.

You nodded, sighing and walking to help Jensen lift him and carry him to the SUV. Once you were back inside, you shook Jared awake lightly. He stirred, grumbling as he rubbed his eyes.

“We’re gonna take Corey to the hospital. Figured you’d want to come.” You spoke softly, hand resting on his chest.

He nodded, sitting up slowly and running a hand through his hair. You turned to walk away, but Jared’s hand caught yours and stopped you.

“Hey, I’m sorry.” He looked up and your eyes met.

“I know. Let’s go.” You tugged on his hand and he stood.

His hand fell on your lower back as you walked out the door to Jensen’s car.

* * *

The car ride was silent. Jared was riding shotgun with Jensen driving, leaving you and Corey in the back seat. You were sitting behind Jensen, Corey’s head laying in your lap while the rest of his body stretched across the rest of the seat. Jared kept stealing glances back at you, checking that Corey was still asleep and not bothering you in the slightest.

When you arrived at the hospital, you told the doctors what had happened. Jared got his hand x-rayed and put in a sling, his fingers wrapped and taped together to hold them in place. You sat in a chair across the room from where Corey was laying in bed, stitches across his forehead above his eye, a bandage and gauze over his nose, and wires and tubes hooked up to him wherever you looked. You couldn’t help the tears that started falling. Jared walked in, so you quickly wiped the tears away and stood to hug him.

“I’m so glad you’re okay.” Your arms wrapped around his wide torso and you buried your face in his soft shirt.

His good hand rubbed up and down your back while he kissed your hair.

“What are you doing in here?” He looked around, then at Corey.

“I didn’t want him to be alone when he woke up. Figured he should know what’s going on.” You looked up and shrugged.

“You’re incredible.” Jared laughed lightly, shaking his head.

“What?” You glanced upward again, confusion crossing your face.

“He treats you like shit, you walk away and let me beat him half to death, you clean him up and bring him here, and now you want to stay with him until he’s awake.” He brushed hair back away from your eyes.

You shrugged again. It hadn’t really occurred to you, it was just what you felt was the right thing to do.

“You’re amazing, [Y/N]. The most beautiful, kindest, most caring person I’ve ever met.” He bent and kissed you quickly.

Like clockwork, Corey started to wake up. Jared pulled away from you, hand lingering on your hip as you turned to look at Corey.

“[Y/N]?” He groaned.

“Yeah, it’s me.” Stepping toward his bed, you reached out to touch his arm.

“What are you doing here?” His eyes shot to Jared.

“You don’t even remember…” You sighed. “You came to my house, drunk off your  _ass_. You hurt me.” Looking down, you spoke softly. “Again,” you whispered. “Jared was there. He… he protected me.” You turned back to Jared.

“Jared.” Corey’s eyes were closed, trying to absorb the information.

“He’s - we’re - I’m with him.” You stammered, unsure of the best way to word it without making him angry.

“Huh.” It was more of a sound than a word that came from Corey. “Jared… Padalecki?” His eyes opened and grew wide as he realized who was standing in front of him.

You nodded.

“I - he - you’re  _with_ him? How did that happen?” He tried to sit up.

“Doesn’t matter. I just wanted to be here when you woke up so you weren’t too confused. We’ll go, you rest.” You patted his arm and started to stand, but were jerked back down onto the bed.

“You’re not going anywhere. You little  _bitch_.” He spoke through gritted teeth. “You bought those convention tickets while we were together. I fucking  _knew_ I shouldn’t have let you do it.” His fingers were digging into the same spot they had been before, causing you to cry out in pain.

Jared was at your side within the second, grabbing you and pulling you to him. Corey’s grasp was weak, but it still hurt. You were crying again, and Jared tucked you under his arm and pulled you out of the room.

“Put him in the psych ward. He’s dangerous to anyone around him.” Jared barked at the doctor and nurse who were running toward the room after they heard you scream. “C’mon, baby.” He walked you to meet Jensen in the waiting room.

Jensen saw you crying again, holding your wrist and rubbing it lightly. He stood and stepped in front of you and Jared.

“What the hell happened?” Jensen’s hand landed on your shoulder, causing you to look up at him briefly.

You shook your head and looked at the ground.

“Let’s get her home.” Jensen stood on the opposite side of Jared, and you’d never felt more protected in your life, but you were still terrified.

* * *

Once you were back home, Jared led you into the bedroom. You sat on the end of the bed, feet dangling a few inches from the floor. Jared knelt in front of you and took your shoes off, dropping them quietly as he removed each one. You watched him as he peeled off your socks, tossing them into the hamper in the corner. He unbuttoned his flannel shirt, tossing it into the same basket as your socks before sitting on the bed next to you.

“Think you’ll be able to sleep?” His hand rubbed up and down your back in an attempt to comfort you.

Shaking your head, you turned and looked at Jared.

“Hey, you’re doing great.” He tucked hair behind your ear. “You’re-” He stopped when he saw you rubbing your wrist again. “Let me see.” He took your hand and pulled your arm across his legs.

You let him trail his fingers lightly across the sensitive skin, closing your eyes and trying to find comfort and a safe place in all of this.

“I can… I want to be your haven. The arms that hold you and make you feel safe. I don’t want you to be scared of me, baby. I will never hurt you. But what I did tonight… That was to protect you. You know that, right?” His finger lifted your chin, making you look into his eyes.

“What if this all goes south, Jared? What if I give myself to you wholly and you end up breaking me down? What if-” You were cut off by his lips pressing against yours.

“What if you just let me love you and show you that I’m not him? What if this is it for us - we’re the last loves for each other?” He kissed you between questions. “You are easily the strongest woman I know. Please, let me prove to you that I’m going to love you through this - through everything.” This kiss was deeper, more passionate, as he poured every ounce of love he had into it.

Nodding as you kissed, Jared laid you back onto the bed and kissed your lips, then your cheeks, then your forehead softly. He whispered to you that he’d be your protector and best friend, your lover and guardian, for as long as you would have him. Everything in your body was telling you to run, to end this before you fell too hard and lost yourself, before your heart was shattered again. But you stayed. You let him hold you that night as you cried yourself to sleep, letting the events of the day sink in.


	8. The Good In Goodbye

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jared spends the weekend with you, convincing you to make some changes to your life, despite how much they might hurt. After his flight back to Vancouver, Jared gives you a call to check in and decides to surprise you.

Spending the weekend with Jared was exactly what you needed after everything that had happened with Corey. Jensen managed to find a flight back to Austin and spent some much needed time with his family, and he even sent Jared a photo of Danneel’s most recent sonogram on Saturday. 

“He’s excited to be a dad again.” You observed with a smile on your face. 

“He really is.” Jared agreed, pulling you closer to his chest and leaning his cheek on the top of your head. The two of you had stayed more or less in the same position all weekend, cuddled together on your couch binge-watching Breaking Bad on Netflix. As the current episode was ending, Jared lifted his head and turned to face you. “Can I ask you something?” You nodded, a little unsettled at his question. “Corey was the one who lived here, right?” You gave another nod. “So… why haven’t you moved yet?” You sighed, having been expecting more questions like this from the minute you left the hospital early Friday morning. 

“It’s - it’s not that simple.” You licked your lips and continued. “Things with Corey were good -  _really_  good - and then they weren’t. He was so kind and willing to do literally anything for me… except apparently be a father. You know his mom accused me of faking the pregnancy just so he’d marry me and then I was gonna take the money and run? Convinced him of it too.” You shook your head. 

“What a bitch.” Jared sneered, and you giggled. 

“Yeah, she was. But he was a good guy until all of that went down, no matter how hard that is to believe.” You shrugged. “I - I’m sorry about all of that. Sorry you had to put up with it.” Looking down, you scooted away from him a few inches.

“Hey, no. It’s okay.” He pulled you back, lifting you and placing you on his legs. “You have nothing to be sorry for.” His hand ran over your hair, smoothing it down. “I just think you deserve a better life - one without him.” You sniffled as unwanted tears burned in your eyes.

“I know. It’s just - he was - we were-” You stuttered, unable to find the words.

“He was it for you for so long.” Jared spoke softly against your hair as you nodded. 

“Exactly. I know I should want him dead, I know I should never want to see him again, I know that. I just - I can’t.” You cried, letting the tears fall onto Jared’s shirt.

“You can. You’ve got me. You want someone to curl up and watch movies with? I’m here. You want to cook dinner for somebody? You’ve got Jensen.” He chuckled, trying to lighten the mood. A small smile pulled at your lips at his musings. 

“You guys are gonna be back in Vancouver soon though.” You played with the collar of his v-neck. “Then who will I cuddle with?” 

“We’ll get you a cat.” Jared shrugged and crinkled your nose. 

“How ‘bout a dog?” You offered. Jared shrugged again, his mouth turned down in a frown and his eyebrows raised. 

“A dog works. As long as you promise me you won’t go back to Corey, you can have whatever you want.” Jared held you back by your shoulders and looked into your eyes. You reached up and pulled his hand off your right shoulder, then held up your pinky and linked it with his. 

“A dog.” You lifted your eyebrows and grinned. Jared rolled his eyes teasingly and breathed in through his nose.

“We’ll go to the shelter next time I’m here.” He agreed with a sigh. You squealed and wrapped your arms around his neck, pressing your lips against his.

* * *

Sunday evening was bittersweet. You got to see Jensen again, as he had to come back to your town to meet up with Jared before they headed to the airport. Clif couldn’t be in two places at once. 

“ ****Alright, lovebirds!” Jensen knocked on the bedroom door as you and Jared said goodbye. “Time to go, Jay!”

“Yeah, I’m comin’!” Jared’s voice was strained when he shouted from the other side of the door. You let out a muffled giggle at his choice of words as you were on your knees in front of him, head bobbing. Jensen grumbled something and his footsteps padded away from the door. Jared stifled a groan of your name as he found his release and you stood, wiping your mouth on the back of your hand.

“Forget me not.” You adjusted the collar of his flannel shirt and cupped his jaw in your hand.

“I will never forget you, baby.” Jared huffed as he tried to catch his breath. You smiled and bit your lip, reaching past Jared for the doorknob. “Fuck, I don’t want to leave.” He stopped you from opening it.

“You have to. You know you have to go, Jare.” You turned back to face him and his arms entrapped you, one hand on either side of your head. “You gotta film.” You looked up at him through your lashes.

“I know. But you’re here, and Corey’s only in the hospital a few miles away.” Jared tucked hair behind your ear. “I’m worried.” He confessed.

“Jared…” You trailed off, looking anywhere but his bright hazel eyes.

“I’m going to worry, no matter what you tell me.” He tipped your chin up so your eyes met his again. “I love you, remember?” He smiled and you returned it warmly.

“I love you too.” You breathed. “I’ll change the locks and I promise I won’t answer the door without looking through the peephole first, okay?” You raised your eyebrows. Jared let out a sigh, unamused. “Jare, I’ll be okay.”

“I’m just…” He shook his head, unable to find the words.

“I’ll call you. Every single day, I’ll call you.” You held up your little finger. Jared’s lip snarled up into a half smile as he wrapped his pinky around yours.

“Every day.” He repeated, eyebrows raised as he swore you to your words. You nodded and stood on your toes to kiss him.

“Get goin’.” You reached behind him and squeezed his butt, making him jump toward you. You giggled against his lips as he pulled away and shook his head. His hand wrapped around the doorknob and pulled it open against your back, forcing you closer to him. His lips enveloped yours in a deep kiss.

“Forget me not.” He winked as his hand swatted at your backside with a harsh smacking noise. You knew there would be a handprint. The two of you walked into the hall where Jensen was waiting at the opposite end, his face dimpled with discontent.

“You two done yet?” He deadpanned, pursing his lips.

“Probably not, but our flight is in, what, two hours?” Jared smiled as he laced his fingers with yours. “We gotta go, baby.” You pouted and nodded, shaking Jared’s hand off and walking to Jensen to hug him.

“Thanks again. For everything.” You whispered before pulling away.

“You got it, kid.” He kissed your temple and released you.

“I’ll see you soon, okay? Talk sooner.” Jared promised as he embraced you tightly. You nodded against his chest, nuzzling into him. “I love you.” He murmured against your hair. Looking up, you smiled with tears pooling in your eyes.

“I love you too.” You whispered, voice breaking as Jared’s thumbs swiped at your crocodile tears. The horn sounded outside, Clif impatiently waiting for the boys.

With that, they were gone. You watched out the window as the black SUV pulled away toward the airport. 

* * *

Eight hours later, Jared’s face filled your screen. It was late, but the vibrating woke you up instantly. You hadn’t been asleep long, and it wasn’t a deep sleep. You couldn’t stop thinking about Jared.

“Hey.” You mumbled as you rubbed your eyes.

“I’m so sorry it took so long. Something happened with the luggage.” He huffed, clearly annoyed.

“’S’okay.” You glanced at the alarm clock. “Jeez, it’s almost 3am.” 

“Go back to sleep. I wanted to let you know I got home safe. And I just - I had a question for you.” He chewed his lip. 

“Mmm?” You hummed against the receiver. Jared laughed lightly at your sleepiness. 

“I was wondering if - if maybe you wanted to - to spend Thanksgiving with my family and me.” He nervously trailed his fingers over the edge of the wood table in his kitchen. 

“Sure.” You chirped, shrugging and snuggling down into your blankets. “Whatever you want.” You yawned. Jared let out a hearty laugh and shook his head.

“I’ll ask you again tomorrow. Get back to sleep, sweetheart. Love you.” He grinned.

“Mm, love you too, Jay.” You murmured, rolling onto your side and letting your phone fall onto your pillow as you slapped the screen and hung up. 


	9. Thankful

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You spend Thanksgiving with the Padalecki’s, spending the following weekend in Austin with Jared, Jensen, and Danneel.

You barely remembered the conversation you’d had with Jared when you said yes, but apparently, somewhere along the line, you agreed to Thanksgiving in San Antonio. As you boarded your plane, you were excited, you were nervous, you were  _beyond_  anxious. 

You were about to meet Jared’s entire family. His mom, his dad, his sister, his brother and his brother’s kids. You sank into your window seat and held your face in your palms. 

“Everything okay?” The elderly woman beside you tapped your upper arm lightly and gave you a kind but worried smile. 

“I’m okay, yeah. Thank you.” You forced a half smile.

“Oh, sweetie, I’ve been around long enough to know when someone is a nervous flyer.” She cooed. 

“It’s - it’s not the flight I’m nervous about.” You confessed with a sigh. 

“Oh? Is it the destination, then?” She reached down and buckled her seatbelt as you nodded. “Visiting family?” 

“Um… no? I don’t - maybe? I’m meeting my boyfriend’s family for the first time. Having Thanksgiving with them.” You laughed nervously. 

“Well that’s wonderful!” She beamed and patted your thigh. “You’ll do great, dear. In the meantime…” She bent in half and reached down, grabbing her purse. As she dug around inside it, she pulled out travel size tissues, an old tube of bright pink lipstick, and finally a bag of hard candy. “Candy always helps calm my nerves. Here, have one.” She plucked a bright red wrapped candy from inside a larger bag and pressed it into your palm. 

“Thanks.” You grimaced and unwrapped the candy slowly, popping it into your mouth and turning to watch the runway appear as the plane taxied to takeoff. 

* * *

You’d managed to sleep through most of the flight, waking up only when the pilot announced it was time to return your tray tables and seat-backs to their upright positions. Rubbing your eyes, you slid the plastic window cover upward and watched the clouds fly by. Before you knew it, you were on the ground. You shuffled out of the plane, trudging toward baggage claim. 

“Is there a Miss Y/N here?” Jared faked a British accent and squinted, pretending not to see you. You laughed and walked to him, shaking your head at his makeshift sign, your name simply drawn on the notepad of his phone. 

“You are such a dork.” You giggled, pushing his phone down and standing on your toes, kissing his lips quickly. “I missed you.” You spoke softly. Jared hummed. 

“Missed you too, babe.” His eyes flicked to the luggage carousel as the horn blew, signaling the arrival of your flight’s bags. “I’ll get it.” He rubbed his hand between your shoulder blades and hurried to find the bag with your name on it. He got it quickly and returned to your side, rushing you as he continued wheeling your bag to the sidewalk. There was a cab waiting for the two of you, so you piled in and headed for Jared’s parents’ house. 

* * *

“We are so happy to have you here!” Megan pulled you into a tight hug. 

“Wouldn’t want to be anywhere else.” You smiled as you pulled out of her embrace.

“Mom and Dad are going to love her, Jare!” Megan squealed and ran to get their parents. 

“Jared…” You tucked yourself into his side as his arm fell around your shoulders. 

“It’ll be alright. They  _are_  gonna love you.” He pulled you closer and kissed the top of your head. “Promise.”

“Well, if my son isn’t a sight for sore eyes!” Jared’s mom rounded the corner and threw her arms open. Jared smiled and hugged her as her eyes fell closed and she inhaled deeply. “I missed you, kiddo.” 

“Yeah, Ma. I missed you guys too.” He rubbed her back before pulling away. “C’mere, Y/N.” Jared’s arm extended and you slowly made your way under it, reaching out your hand to shake his mother’s. 

“Oh, sweetheart, you’re in Texas. We don’t shake hands in Texas.” She pulled your hand and wrapped her arms around you. “I’m Sherri, by the way.” 

“Y/N.” You managed to choke out the word through the bone-crushing hug that was apparently a family trait for the Padalecki’s. 

“Ger!” Sherri called into the living room. “Come meet your son’s girlfriend!” 

“I’m comin’, I’m comin’.” Gerald smiled as he walked through the dining room, clapping his hand on Jared’s shoulder before they patted one another’s backs in a ‘manly hug.’ “Where’s the fine lady?” You shyly raised your hand and smiled. 

“Hi.” You slinked across the floor and opened your arms. 

“Oh, there we go!” Gerald smiled and pulled you in. “Atta girl. Learnin’ already.” He winked as you drew back. 

“It’s uh - it’s gettin’ kinda late. I think maybe we should hit it.” Jared pointed upstairs nervously. You nodded, eyes thanking him abundantly. You wanted nothing more than to get out of the awkward introductions. 

“Alright, alright. We’ll have plenty of time to talk tomorrow. Really get to know ya.” Gerald’s hand fell on your shoulder. “Night, kids.” 

“Night, Dad. Night, Ma.” Jared smiled quickly and took your hand, leading you up the steps. 

* * *

The next day, you woke up and showered in the ensuite bathroom in the guest room. As you wrapped a towel around your chest, Jared pushed the door open slowly and snuck in.

“Mornin’.” He drawled, hands falling to your hips and pushing up on your towel.

“Morning, big guy.” You smiled up at him, running your fingers over his stubble. “How many days is this?” 

“Mmm, three?” He tipped his face into your palm and kissed it lightly. “Why, you like?” 

“Bet your ass I like.” You scratched at the scruff, letting it burn your fingertips as your mind wandered to every other patch of skin you wanted to feel that burn. A tiny moan escaped your lips and Jared smiled. 

“I’ll grow it out until I have to start filming again. How’s that sound?” He bent and brushed his lips against yours as he spoke. 

“That sounds…” You trailed off, molding your lips between his as your hand wrapped around the back of his neck. You lost yourself in the kiss until it was interrupted by a knock on the bedroom door.

“Up and at ‘em!” Megan’s voice called from the other side. “Kiddos are gonna be here soon!” Jared groaned as his lips fell from yours with a playful smile. 

“Go, shower. I’ll hold off Meg.” You patted his chest and pointed to the glass shower door, still steamed from your time inside. Jared kissed you quickly once more and you turned and hurried for the door. “Hey, Meg!” You beamed, holding your towel tightly.

“Mornin’, sunshine.” She chuckled, eyes widening at your attire. “You two almost ready to come down?” 

“Jare just hopped in the shower, but I just have to throw on my dress.” You shrugged as she laughed again. 

“Well, Jeff’s bringin’ the little ones in a few, so, y’know.” She tilted her head. 

“Make sure I’m properly dressed.” You nodded. “Got it. Be down in ten.” You spun and closed the door quietly as Megan bound down the stairs, shaking her head with a smile on her face.

* * *

Gerald was at the head of the table, Sherri to his left. You were beside Sherri, across from Jeff’s wife with a baby on her lap. The other three kids were scattered, sitting between and beside Megan and Jared. Big platters and bowls of food were passed around, everyone scooping their fair share on to their plates. Sherri knew her family was composed of literal giants, so sh made more than enough food for everyone to eat and for them to take leftovers home with them.

After dinner, the guys piled onto the sectional sofa and flipped on the football game. The Cowboys were up against the Redskins, and the living room had never been louder. You stood in the kitchen, between Sherri and Megan as Sherri washed the dishes, you dried, and Megan put them away. Jeff’s wife stood back and bounced her baby on her hip, trying to lull him to sleep despite the noise. 

The dishes were away, and you were playing cards at the dining room table with Sherri. As the first commercial started, the volume was instantly lowered on the television. 

“‘Bout damn time they look away from that television.” Sherri chuckled. “Same thing every Thanksgiving. I’m surprised none of them have passed out yet.” 

“Soon. Gerald’s eyes are lookin’ a little heavy.” You noted, nodded in the direction of her husband. As you peered into the living room, you saw Jared turn toward Jeff and start talking. The commercial ended, giving you about a second and a half to listen in on what Jared was saying. Lucky for you, the beginning of the next commercial was quiet, so you could still hear over it.

“I don’t know, man. It’s like - like it was with Sandra.” Jared shook his head. “Everything is happening so damn fast, and I know what you’re gonna say - I know what everyone is going to say. Take it slow, make sure it’s right this time. But you know what? It’s right. It’s so damn right.” Jared breathed a laugh. “More right than anything has felt in - in a long time. She makes me happy. Do you know how long it’s been since I’ve been really, truly happy, Jeff?”

The commercial blared music, cutting off your earshot and turning your attention back to the game of Go Fish you’d been distracted from. You knew who Sandra was. She was Jared’s ex-fiancee from almost a decade ago. He felt the same way for you that he felt for her. What did that mean? Your head raced with thoughts as you barely made it through another hand.

After Sherri had beaten you at every card game she knew, you joined the guys in the living room. The kids moved to the floor and you snuggled up beside Jared. His arm fell over your shoulders as he pulled you close, placing a gentle kiss to the top of your head.

“Love you.” He whispered, smiling against the shell of your ear. You didn’t respond, just looked up at him and smiled sweetly.

The game ended, the leftovers were packed, and Jeff had a sleeping kid over each of his shoulders as he waved goodbye. You had made your way upstairs to pack your bags. Jared joined you after a few minutes.

“No funny business, mister.” You warned with a peek over your shoulder. You were in the process of changing into one of Jared’s old UT t-shirts and black tights when he entered the room. “We gotta hit the road.” 

“I know, I know. But…  _damn_.” He sighed as his eyes moved over your body, legs still bare. You shook your head and laughed as he pouted behind you, picking up his duffel bag and throwing a shirt into it. 

“Toothbrush?” You ticked off your mental checklist aloud. Jared hummed affirmatively. “Makeup bag, hairbrush, razor… Okay. I think I’m good.” You threw your bag over your shoulder and popped the handle up on your suitcase.

“Good. I gotta get you home.” Jared snarled against the back of your neck where your shoulder joined. You pressed back against him and rolled your hips, drawing a low groan from Jared’s lips. 

* * *

Just under two hours later, you pulled into the driveway at Jared’s place. Before your bags were even dropped on the floor, Jared’s arms were around your waist, pulling you to him. You whined and pushed him away lightly. 

“I’m tired, Jay.” You nuzzled your head against his chest. 

“ _Too_  tired?” He murmured against the side of your neck, nipping at your earlobe.

“Y- yeah.” You sighed, trying not to give in. Truth be told, you were exhausted. Between flying and changing timezones and spending a day stuffing yourself full of heavy food, you were beat. “Bed?” You yawned. 

“Yeah.” Jared pouted again, leading you back the hall to his bedroom. 

* * *

Friday came and went lazily, with the exception of the run you made for some Black Friday shopping. Jared refused to go, saying Austin was crazy enough without the added lure of buy one get one free everything. You warmed up leftovers from Jared’s parents’ house for dinner and sank into the plush cushions of his couch to finish the season of Breaking Bad. 

By Saturday you had adjusted to the travel and woke almost with the sun. Jared groaned beside you and threw his arm over your waist.

“Sta-ayyyy.” He whined into his pillow. You laughed and pried his arm off of you, peeling yourself out of bed. 

“I gotta pee.” You giggled when his fingers wiggled behind you in the air. “Be right back, I promise.” You shuffled to the bathroom and then to the kitchen, flicking on the coffee pot and starting the brew. Making your way back to Jared, you laid gently on the bed and snuggled back into Jared’s body. Your back molded perfectly to his chest, his legs folding in line with yours as he drew you near.

“Don’t move.” He mumbled into your hair. 

“Wouldn’t dream of it.” You sighed happily. “But… I do have coffee started.” You turned to peek over your shoulder. 

“ _God_ , you’re the best.” Jared groaned softly, pressing a kiss to your shoulder.

After breakfast, you and Jared headed to Jensen’s house. You were on your way to meet Danneel and JJ for the first time. Cue nerves again.

Danneel was the sweetest, kindest person you’d ever met, and JJ was just a mini version of her momma. They both hugged you tighter than any Padalecki had, despite one of them being three years old and the other being eight months pregnant.

“Uncle Jared!” JJ clambered onto Jared’s long legs as he sat down. “Who that?” 

“Jay…” Danneel sighed, shaking her head. “Manners, love.”

“Sorry. ‘Scuse me?” JJ tapped lightly on your leg as you sat beside Jared. 

“Yeah?” You smiled at her. 

“Wha’s your name?” Her head tipped to the side and her little eyebrows crinkled together.

“I’m Y/N. Who are you?” You poked her tummy.

“Juss’ice Jay!” She beamed proudly. “You can call me JJ, though.” She added sassily. 

“Well, hi there, Justice Jay. It’s very nice to meet you.” You reached out your hand and she frowned at it, shaking her head.

“This’s  _Texas_. We don’ shake hands’in Texas.” She shook her head and leaped from Jared’s lap to yours, wrapping her arms around your neck. You laughed and looked at Jared.

“Wonder where you learned that.” You smiled knowingly.

“Oh!” Danneel shouted from the kitchen, laying a hand over her stomach.

“You okay?” Jensen ran to her side, laying a hand on her back and the other over hers.

“That um… that kind of felt like a contraction.” She shook her head in disbelief. “Not this early.” She pleaded.

“Oh my God.” Jensen shouted, pulling your attention away from his daughter. 

“You okay?” You stood and peered into the kitchen. “Danni?” You moved quickly to them. “What is it?” You spoke quietly, trying not to alarm JJ.

“Felt like a contraction.” She looked at the counter between where her hands were gripping the edge.

“Really?” You squeaked excitedly.

“It’s too early, Y/N. We scheduled the birth for December.” Jensen explained. “I - can you - would you mind watching JJ while I take Dee in?” 

“No, not at all, of course.” You nodded and urged them along. “Go. I’ll tell Jared.” They grabbed their light jackets and headed for the door. “Jensen, call me later and keep me  _updated!”_  You sang as you pushed them out the door.

* * *

Jensen and Danneel returned a little while later, both with looks of relief plastered on their faces.

“No babies.” Jensen sighed happily. You pouted and looked up at Jared. 

“You wanted babies.” Jared raised his eyebrows as you nodded. 

“Jay, we gotta be ready to fly home whenever. Doc says it could happen any day.” Jensen shook his head.

* * *

Monday morning, you were up before the sun saying goodbye to Jared and making your way to Jensen and Danneel’s house again. Danneel had asked you to stay with her so she could get to know you more before her life was consumed entirely with diapers and breast pumps.

Jensen let you in, helping you quietly sneak up to the guest bedroom and settle back into the down blankets that awaited you. Jared laughed as you cocooned yourself and hummed contentedly. Leaning down, he placed a kiss to your forehead and told you goodbye before he and Jensen left for the airport.

You woke up a few hours later to the sound of JJ singing in the kitchen. Danneel tried to shush her, to let you sleep, but you were rested enough as you walked downstairs in Jared’s shirt and boxers.

“Mornin’!” JJ chirped and ran to hug your legs. “Momma’s makin’ brea’fas’!” She pointed to Danneel at the stove.

“I see that, Jay.” You bent and lifted her, placing her on your hip. “Did you help?” She nodded and smiled proudly. 

“With’a batter.” She put a hand on her hip, still grinning. 

“You did a good job, sweetheart.” You returned her smile and placed her in a chair at the island. “Hey, Dee?” Danneel hummed and turned around, spatula in hand as she waited to flip the pancakes. “Wanna have a girls’ day?”

“That… actually sounds amazing.” She stared off into the air, like she had been daydreaming about that very thing. “I have organic seaweed facial clay upstairs. We’ll paint Jay’s nails and maybe…” Danneel paused to flip the pancakes and shoot JJ a secret look. “Maybe we can even give her that pink hair she’s been wantin’.” 

“Momma! Really, Momma? Pink hair?” JJ squealed and bounced in her seat. Danneel nodded and laid a blueberry pancake on the plate in front of her daughter. 

* * *

Every night since the first night you slept at the Ackles’, you read JJ a story before tucking her into bed. One night in particular, Wednesday, you could tell something was off with her as she snuggled into your side.

“You alright, Jaybird?” You peered down at her as she fiddled with the edge of her blanket. She nodded, not bothering to look up at you. You frowned. “You sure?” 

“‘M worried.” She shrugged. 

“Worried? About what, love?” You turned to face her and she finally met your gaze.

“‘Fraid Momma and Daddy won’t love me after th’babies.” Her voice grew quieter as tears swelled in her big eyes.

“Oh, Jay…” You pulled her closer, hugging her to your chest. “Of course Momma and Daddy will still love you.” You kissed the top of her head. “You’re their little Birdie, right?” She nodded, wiping her eyes with her blanket. “That won’t change, little one. You’ll always be Birdie. Nobody can take that from you, okay?” 

“Y- yeah.” She sniffled.

“Sweetie, I pinky promise you, it’ll be okay. Things are going to change a little bit around here, but your Momma and Daddy are going to love you just as much as they always have.” You lifted your pinky and she looked at it with a confused expression.

“Wha’s that?” She frowned.

“Here, like this.” You helped her poke out her pinky and wrapped your around it, kissing your thumb. She repeated your actions with a loud, exaggerated smooching noise. “See? Pinky promise. Now I can’t break that, not  _ever_.” You winked and she smiled, nestling back into the sheets.

“Can you finish th’story?” She batted her long lashes up at you and you chuckled, nodding and letting her turn the page.

* * *

Exactly one week after you’d met Danneel, she was running into the guest bedroom of her own house, where you were fast asleep at almost midnight. 

“Y/N!” She shook your shoulder. “Y/N, sweetie, I need you to wake up.” You groaned and nuzzled your face against your pillow, eyes scrunching in protest. “Y/N,  _please_.”

“What?” You rubbed your eye with the back of your hand as the other popped open. 

“I’m going into labor.” 

* * *

Jensen rushed home, Jared by his side until Jensen took your place beside Danneel while you sat anxiously in the waiting area with your boyfriend. It wasn’t long after the guys arrived that Jensen was walking into the waiting room, tears in his eyes as he told you the news.

“They’re perfect.” He smiled proudly, wiping his eyes with the back of his hand. “They’re…” You stepped to him and wrapped your arms around him, your face disappearing in his blue paper gown. 

“They’re amazing, just like their parents.” You looked up at him and grinned. “Let’s go see these babies.” You looked over your shoulder at Jared who was holding JJ on his hip. Jensen’s arm fell over your shoulder as yours snaked around his waist and the four of you made your way back to the nursery window. 

“JJ, you see the really, really small ones?” You lifted her and pointed your finger in the direction of the twins, one boy, one girl, labeled in big bold letters with their daddy’s last name. She nodded with a big smile on her face.

“They my babies?!” She bounced excitedly on your hip. You laughed and nodded, kissing her cheek. 

“They’re your baby brother and sister. Maybe later, after their naps, you can meet them.” You offered. 

“I can’t wait t’hold them! What’s their names?” JJ squealed. 

“Th- that’s a good question, Jaybird.” You looked to Jared, who shrugged and turned to Jensen. 

“What  _are_  their names, Jay?” Jared asked. 

“She’s Arrow. Arrow Rhodes.” Jensen’s eyes fell to his younger daughter and glazed over with tears again. You looked at JJ.

“I like it.” She nodded approvingly. “Wha’ ‘bout him?” 

“His name is… Zeppelin.” Jensen’s eyes darted to Jared quickly with a playful smirk on both their faces.

“You’ve gotta be kidding me.” You giggled, shaking your head. “Zeppelin? Jensen, you’re Dean is showing.” He gasped and pulled his hands in front of his crotch, feigning embarrassment.

“So, what, you don’t like it?” He cocked his eyebrow.

“I love it. Does he have a middle name? Let me guess, Zeppelin Winchester.” You teased.

“Zeppelin Bram.” He corrected you, moving his neck sassily. You frowned and raised your eyebrows. 

“I like it.” You repeated JJ’s earlier sentiment with a shrug. “They’re beautiful, Jay.” You smiled kindly at him. “How’s Momma doin’?” 

“She’s exhausted. I figured I’d take Birdie here out to get some lunch and then when we come back she can go see her Momma and meet her new brother and sister. How’s that sound, Jay?” Jensen reached out his hands and took her from you as she nodded eagerly. “You two gonna hang around? I want you to meet ‘em too.” 

“We’ll go grab our own food and meet y’all back here in a little while. Give you some family time.” Jared clapped his hand on Jensen’s shoulder and laced his arm around your waist. “C’mon.” He pulled you to his side and the two of you made your way to the café down the street.

You and Jared talked over lunch about what had happened since you’d last seen each other earlier in the week. You told him how amazing you thought it was that you were seeing him again so soon, how much you adored spending time with JJ every day, how you couldn’t wait to have kids of your own.

As you walked back into the hospital, you heard the squeak of JJ’s purple boots against the linoleum floor. She ran to you and smacked against your thighs, looking up and smiling wide. 

“I’m gonna meet th’babies!” She bounced on her toes. “You too!” 

“Yeah? We can meet them soon?” You grinned down at her and she nodded. 

“Daddy’s gonna take us back real soon.” She reached up and took your hand, holding your index and middle finger and leading you toward Jensen, Jared trailing behind the two of you. 

“We can go back now. Dee’s awake.” Jensen stood and stepped toward the nurses’ station, leaning down and quietly telling her who you were trying to see. She smiled and passed Jensen a visitor’s badge for each of you, watching as you clipped them to the bottom of your shirts. The nurse pointed to a set of wood doors and you waited for them to buzz before pushing them open. 

The four of you made your way back to Danneel’s room, where she was sitting up in bed, running her finger along Arrow’s small arm where she lay in her bassinet. 

“Oh my God.” You breathed, tears stinging your eyes. “Look at them…” Your eyes moved from Arrow and Zeppelin up to Danneel. “Danni, they’re adorable.” She gave you a sweet smile.

“Wanna hold ‘em?” She raised her eyebrows. 

“Them? Both? At the same time?” Your voice raised in pitch as you continued your string of one worded questions. Danneel laughed lightly and nodded. 

“You’ll be okay. They’re easy. They’ll just stay asleep.” She spun in bed and lifted Arrow from her makeshift crib, placing her gently in your arms. “She’s so chill.”

“She’s so gorgeous, Dan.” You looked at the tiny bundle in your arms and spoke softly, not wanting to wake Arrow. “Look at her fluffy hair!” You giggled, peeking under her little pink hat. 

“Yeah, I’m gonna have to find some baby safe hair product for that one. It’s wild already and she’s barely six hours old.” Danneel turned and looked over her shoulder as she pulled Zeppelin from his bed. “Here, other arm.” She instructed, waiting for you to crook your other elbow to make room for Zeppelin. You obeyed, Jared and Jensen watching from the foot of Danneel’s bed. 

“Jare, c’mere.” You whispered, motioning with your head. He came to your side, placing a large hand in the curve at the bottom of your spine and peering down over your shoulder at the babies. “Look how small.” You peeked up at him.

“I see ‘em.” Jared smiled, seeing how happy you were holding the twins. As he watched you croon over the babies, his fingers rubbed patterns into your shirt. His mind raced with thoughts of you holding his children someday, and he knew he must’ve been crazy to be thinking about something like that so early on. Clearing his throat and blinking back his tears, he held out his hands. “Can I?” You nodded, looking to Danneel for her approval. 

“Don’t squish ‘em, giant.” She teased. Jared smirked and rolled his eyes, gently pulling Zeppelin from your grasp. “Hey, Jay? You wanna hold your baby sister?” She looked down at JJ, who had scrambled up onto the bed and settled in beside her. JJ nodded and you moved to the edge of the bed. Leaning down, you eased Arrow into JJ’s arms and watched as Danneel held her hand under JJ’s elbow, helping her support the baby’s head. You leaned over and pecked Danneel’s cheek before quickly doing the same to JJ.

“Beautiful girls.” You spoke softly. Danneel smiled up at you. 

“Hey, Y/N?” Jared beckoned you back to his side and you hummed, awaiting the rest of his question. “How would you feel about spendin’ Christmas with me - with us?” 

“Really?” Your eyes widened, and you couldn’t help the raise in your voice. Jared nodded, a grin spreading across his face and making his dimples deepen on either side of his lips. “I’d love to.” 


	10. The Happiest Of Holidays

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You’re finally looking forward to Christmas, and for good reason.

Christmas was a holiday you’d always been indifferent about, but this year was different. This year, you had a reason to celebrate anything you could. This year, you were happy. You flew home from Austin a few days after the twins were born, Jared and Jensen returning to Vancouver once Danneel was settled in at home. Now, here you were, a little over two weeks later, repacked and in a cab on your way to the airport. 

Your flight was simple, something you were actually looking forward to this time, since there were no first-time meetings like there had been at Thanksgiving. You’d already met both Jensen’s and Danneel’s parents when the twins were born, and you’d just found out Jared’s parents were coming in from San Antonio for the holiday as well. 

“Y/N?” Clif was standing at baggage claim waiting for you.

“Hey, Clif. Why’re you here?” You frowned.

“Jared and Jensen promised me they’d keep to themselves in Vancouver while I got some extra time off for the holiday. Plus someone has to pick you up.” He grinned, pulling you into a hug. “How ya been, kid?” He took your suitcase from you and began dragging it behind him, his other arm draped over your shoulder casually. 

“I’ve been… good.” You shrugged. Clif looked down at you with a skeptical expression. “No, really. I’ve been good. I’ve been happy. Missing y’all, but happy.” Clif grimaced and you looked at him curiously. 

“Those boys have ruined you already with their southern twang. ‘Y’all’?” He raised his eyebrows. You giggled and shook your head, sliding into the passenger seat of the car. “What’re you doin’ up front?” He smiled.

“Figured I’d keep you company on the way to Jensen’s. Feels weird sittin’ in the back when we could just ride like normal people.” You peered at him over your shoulder as he tossed your luggage into the hatch.

Clif climbed into the driver’s seat and pushed the key into the ignition, throwing the SUV in drive and making his way out of the crowded area. Once you hit the highway, he looked at you from the corner of his eye.

“You said on the way to Jensen’s?” He spoke over the quiet radio, and you nodded, turning toward him as you looked up from your phone. “Why would you be goin’ to Jensen’s?” 

“Isn’t… wait, what?” You tilted your head. “I thought I was staying with Dan and the kids until Jared and Jensen came home.” Clif shook his head.

“Don’t think so, kiddo. Jared told me to take you to his place.” Clif flicked on the turn signal and changed lanes, accelerating past the car that had been slowing him down. 

“Why would he…” You chewed on your lower lip nervously. “I don’t know if I want to stay at his house alone.” You admitted. 

“It’s only for a few days. He’ll be home soon. End of the week, I think.” Clif shrugged. 

“It’s Tuesday.” You whispered. You wanted nothing less than to stay in Jared’s home by yourself. “Clif, can you please take me to Jensen’s?” 

“Gotta call the boss first, make sure it’s okay.” His mouth twitched to the side. 

“No! No, Clif please. I don’t want Jared thinking I don’t want to stay at his place.” You placed your hand on Clif’s arm, stopping him from dialing Jared through the bluetooth on the car. 

“Well… isn’t that exactly what’s going on?” Clif prompted. 

“Y- yeah. I just - Clif I don’t want to stay there alone. With Jared, it’s different. I don’t feel right without him. In his bed, using his kitchen to cook, brushing my teeth in his sink. You know?” You worried your bottom lip again. 

“I get that, sweetheart, but I think you should at least give it a shot. One night at Jared’s, then we’ll see how you’re feelin’.” He suggested, and you hesitantly accepted. “You can visit with Danni and the kids during the day all you want.”

“I know. I just… nevermind. Let’s go to Jared’s.” 

* * *

When you got to Jared’s, Clif unlocked the door and showed you inside. He made sure the back door was locked and you knew where everything was, including the list of emergency phone numbers Jared had left for you. 

“What am I, twelve?” You chuckled, sticking the notebook paper back on the fridge with a clack of the magnet. 

“He’s just being thorough.” Clif laughed. “You sure you’re alright? I’m gonna get goin’.” 

“I’m fine, Clif. Go home. I solemnly swear I’ll call if I need  _anything_.” You raised your pinky.

“Yeah, pinky promise.” He smirked and turned, heading out the door. 

You locked the deadbolt behind him, arming the alarm system using the instructions on the post-it note by the keypad. After the house was secure, you made your way to Jared’s bedroom and pulled your suitcase up onto the bed. Zipping it open, you grabbed your shampoo and body wash, carefully plucking your razor from the smaller pouch and went to the bathroom. Hanging on the back of the door, Jared had left two towels with a note stuck to each of them.

“ _For your hair.”_ and _“For your body ;)”_

Shaking your head, you pulled back the glass door and turned on the water, steam filling the room as you washed the day’s travel from your skin. After your shower, you walked back to Jared’s room and pulled open his dresser drawer. 

“Perfect.” You grinned and pulled a black long-sleeved v-neck from within and put it on with nothing else. You grabbed your phone and looked at the time, wondering if Jared was done filming for the day. You texted him to make sure if he wasn’t on set anymore. When he responded, telling you he wasn’t, you jumped on your opportunity. 

You found the full-length mirror in Jared’s room and flicked on the floor lamp beside it. With one knee bent and your hair leaving droplets on the top of Jared’s shirt you adjusted the bottom of it so it was sitting perfectly on your hip. It was obvious you were bare under his garment. You drew your lower lip between your teeth and smiled sweetly, snapping a picture with your phone. You decided to take two more for good measure before you settled onto the end of Jared’s bed.

 _“Miss you xo”_ accompanied the photos as you tapped the send button and waited for Jared’s response. Instead of a short vibration of your phone, a constant buzzing filled the room. Jared was calling you. You smirked proudly and swiped your finger across the bottom of the screen, answering the call. 

“Hey, baby.” You grinned, laying back and holding your phone above you.

“ _Hey… baby?”_ He choked out, his face flushed and his eyes wide. “ _That’s what you have to say to me after sending me pictures like that?”_

“Relax. That was nothin’.” You wiggled your brows playfully. 

“ _Y/N, don’t tease me like that.”_ Jared warned. 

“Just wanted you to know I’m getting comfortable at your place.” You shrugged innocently. “Let you see what’s waiting for you when you come home on Friday.”

“ _It’s torture, baby._ ” He groaned. “ _You locked the house up, right?”_

“Yes, Jared, I locked the house up. Alarm is set and I’m all cozy in your bed.” You mewled, wriggling your hips.

“ _Damn it.”_  Jared gritted his teeth and clenched his jaw. 

“I’ll stop.” You smiled. “I’ll save it for this weekend.” 

“ _I can’t wait to see you again.”_  Jared leaned closer to his phone. 

“I can’t wait to see you either. It’s - I love seeing you so often.” You sighed happily. “I was worried about that, honestly.”

“ _I was too, but now we don’t have to. We’ll make it work. We’re making it work._ ” Jared reassured you, a kind smile pulling on his lips. “ _Hey, it’s late. Go get some sleep._ ” 

“You too, big guy.” You raised an eyebrow at him. Jared held up his pinky.

“ _I will._ ” He grinned. “ _G’night Y/N. I love you_.” He brought the phone to his lips and kissed the camera.

“I love you too.” You smiled and blew him a kiss through the phone. “Night, Jare.”

* * *

You spent all day Wednesday out shopping, walking around downtown Austin to get the gifts you needed for everyone. As you walked around, completely unnoticed, you were abundantly thankful Jared hadn’t posted any photos of you anywhere yet. You could hardly deal with the massive throngs of people swarming the stores, let alone having them notice you as Jared Padalecki’s girlfriend.

“Fancy meeting you here.” A familiar voice sang behind you. 

“Sherri!” You spun and hugged her quickly.

“There we go, you’re gettin’ the hang of it out here.” She smiled. “Who’re you shoppin’ for?” She peered down at the mass of bags weighing down your arm.

“Oh, Danni and the kids. I have Jared’s and Jensen’s gifts back home already.” You shrugged. 

“That’s a lot of presents for babies who don’t even know what Christmas is.” Sherri chuckled, her eyebrows lifted.

“I hadn’t even thought of that.” You shook your head. “Plus they already have so many toys. You should see the pictures Dan sends me.” You smiled fondly at the memory of them. 

“I was thinkin’ about heading over there and making them dinner tonight. Care to join?” She offered. 

“I’d love to.”

* * *

“Danni, oh my God. They’re even more perfect than last time I saw them.” You rubbed your finger over Arrow’s palm and her little fingers squeezed it tightly. Danneel smiled as she perched herself in the corner of their sectional sofa, breast pump in hand.

“Precious, aren’t they?” Sherri peered at the twins over your shoulder. You turned and nodded quickly before focusing on the babies again.

“They still kind of looked like aliens last time you were around, Y/N.” Danni giggled at your shocked expression. “What? Babies aren’t cute fresh out the box.” She motioned with both hands to the apex of her thighs. Your cheeks flushed at her forwardness, especially right in front of Jared’s mom. 

“Well.” Sherri straightened her back and cleared her throat. “I um - I’ll be in the kitchen whenever you’re ready to join me, Y/N.” You swallowed hard and nodded, following her to the counter. Behind you, Danneel threw her head back laughing at your embarrassment. 

“So um… what are we making?” You shifted uneasily on your feet. You were spending time alone with Jared’s mother. 

“It’s an old Polish thing.” She shrugged. “Gerald’s mom gave me the recipe when he and I got married. Tucked the old index card into our wedding gift.” She smiled at her fond memory. 

“Wh-” You cleared your throat, treading carefully. “What  _is_  it?” 

“Halupki.” She smiled, gauging your expression.

“Hu- wh _at_?” You raised your brows. 

“Halupki, sweetheart.” Sherri laughed. “Stuffed cabbage.” She explained.

“ _Oh_.” You nodded, watching as she pulled the head of cabbage from the fridge. 

“It’s simple. Steam the leaves, cook the meat, wrap it up and bake it!” She smiled, placing each item on the counter before turning to look at you. “Think you can handle it?” You swallowed hard and gave a short nod.

“N- not by myself, right? You’ll - you’ll help?” You picked up the cabbage and peeled the leaves nervously. 

“Of course I’ll help.” Sherri chuckled and unwrapped the meat, placing it in the large pan on the stove.

* * *

Friday night, after Jared got home, you insisted that you make him halupki for dinner. He laughed and agreed. 

“You’ve been spending time with my mom.” Jared observed. You nodded and handed him a glass of red wine. “Thanks, babe.” He sipped it as his eyes followed you around the kitchen.

You went through the somewhat tedious process of making and waiting for the halupki to finish cooking. Sitting the plate down in front of Jared, you watched him eagerly, waiting for him to take the first bite. 

“Alright, alright.” He chuckled, cutting into the leaves. As he chewed, his eyebrows knitted together and you felt your heart sink. He swallowed and reached for his wine, washing it down. 

“Oh God, you hate it.” You covered your face with your hands.

“No, no.” Jared shook his head, a hand lifted and shaking in protest. “No, sweetheart, I don’t hate it.” 

“But it’s not good.” You sighed. “I’m sorry.” 

“You have nothing to be sorry for.” He laughed lightly. “It’s good. It’s just - it’s not my mom’s, y’know?” 

“Oh.” You looked at the floor. 

“Hey.” Jared’s hand fell over yours. “It’s  _good_.” He stabbed his fork into another bite. “I promise.” His pinky stuck out and linked with yours as he chewed.

* * *

Two days later, you were pulling on one of Jared’s grey sweaters and rolling up the sleeves when he walked into the bedroom. 

“What’re you doing?” He grinned. “You know it’s like almost eighty outside?” 

“Really? Dang. Hot Christmas has never been a dream of mine. Let’s go to Vancouver next year.” You pulled the sweater off, leaving you in your black tights and bra standing before Jared. 

“Hm, I’d say you could go like this but my parents will be there…” He stepped toward you and put his hands on your hips. 

“Jared.” You peered up at him and shook your head. “We have to be there soon.” 

“I can be quick.” Jared pressed his lips against your neck and lifted you, tossing you onto the bed and scrambling over you. 

* * *

You grabbed a dark green dress from the closet and pulled it off the hanger, slipping it over your head and tucking your arms into the sleeves. 

“I like that.” Jared, still naked, nodded from his spot on the bed. 

“I like  _that_.” You pointed to his body, finger moving up and down, panning the length of him. 

“Trust me, I know. The neighbors probably know too.” He smirked and you blushed.

“Get up and get dressed. We gotta go. We were supposed to be there fifteen minutes ago and I’m sure your mom is having a fit. Here.” You tossed a beanie at him. “Cover your sex hair.”

Jared was ready in a few minutes and the two of you were headed out the door, bags of gifts on each arm, making your way to the Ackles’. Jared didn’t bother knocking, just pushed the door open and was greeted by JJ.

“Uncle Jared!” She wrapped her arms around his legs. “Merry Chris’mus!” 

“You too, Birdie.” He reached down and ruffled her hair. “Can you show me and Y/N where we can put all these presents?” She nodded and grabbed his hand, dragging him through the foyer and into the massive family room. The Ackles did  _not_  skimp on Christmas, that was for damn sure. Their tree was bigger than any you’d ever seen, stretching upward toward their twelve-foot ceiling and decked out with all kinds of family heirloom ornaments. 

“Look’it!” She pointed with her free hand to the piles of gifts, still unwrapped, under the tree.

“Did you unwrap presents this morning, Jay?” You let her show you  _exactly_  where she wanted you to put your gifts. She nodded with a big smile. “Did you get all kinds of good stuff? Everything you asked Santa for?”

“Yah! And Momma said don’ be greedy but…” She shuffled her feet. “But I kinda wanted a easy bake an’ I didn’t get it.” 

“Hey, look at all these presents still left.” You crouched down and put your hand on her back. “You see ‘em all?” She nodded. “I bet almost…  _fifty_  of ‘em are yours.” You exaggerated, poking her side. 

“Not  _fif’fy._ ” She shook her head with a giggle. “There’s gotta be some for Ro and Zeppy too, Y/N!” She laughed and rolled her eyes. “You’re silly.” 

“Y/N!” Jared’s voice boomed from the kitchen. You and Jj both whipped around and looked at him. 

“We’re  _talkin’_ , Uncle Jared.” She pursed her lips. 

“Oh, excuse me, Jaybird.” He threw his hands up in defeat. “When you’re done talkin’, can I have my girlfriend back?” He smiled sweetly. JJ gave him a sharp nod and you laughed behind her. She turned you back around to face the tree and finished her sentiments about how many presents she thought were hers. Once she was done, she gripped onto your hand and guided you into the kitchen. Jared thanked her and kissed her cheek, setting her on a chair at the island. Jared’s arm wrapped around your waist as he pulled you close. 

“See my parents aren’t even  _here_ yet.” Jared teased. You rolled your eyes.

“So…” Danneel looked across the island at the two of you, licking her finger as she scooped brownie batter off the whisk. 

“Momma!” JJ shrieked and held out her hand. Danneel raised her brows and waited. “Please?” 

“Atta girl.” She smiled and passed the whisk to her eldest daughter.

“So?” Jared looked at Danneel, waiting for her to finish her question.

“So why were you two  _late_?” She wiggled her brows. Jensen rolled his eyes and turned back to the oven, setting the timer. You cleared your throat and squeaked as Jared’s hand squeezed your backside. “Thought so.” Danneel laughed and shook her head. “Ah, Jay, remember when we were so newly in love?” She faked a swoon and leaned against her husband, his arm wrapping around her stomach. “Those were the days.” 

“Yeah, because I didn’t just give you  _twins_.” Jensen scoffed jokingly and kissed her temple.

The doorbell kept the conversation from digressing any farther. Jensen nodded at JJ when she perked up, silently asking if she could get the door again. 

“Don’t make that a habit.” Danneel groaned. “Go with her next time, yeah?” Jensen nodded in agreement and watched as JJ dragged yet another person through the house. Jared’s parents had arrived, toting more presents than you and Jared, which was exceptional considering you thought you’d had a truckload. 

“Hey there, sweetie!” Gerald found you first, wrapping you in a tight embrace. 

“Hi.” You smiled breathlessly as he squeezed you. “You look good!” You stood back and admired the weight he’d lost since you’d last seen him. 

“Thanks. Sherri put me on a strict diet.” He joked, earning a swat to his arm. 

“He’s  _kidding_. He’s training for a 5K in the city.” She leaned in and kissed your cheek. “Good to see you again, dear.”

“You too.” You smiled sweetly. 

“Hey, Ma. You’ll be happy to know your cooking lessons are paying off.” Jared grinned proudly. 

“Is that so?” Sherri raised her brows. 

“She made halupki Friday night.” Jared nodded. “It was really good.” His hand fell to the small of your back where he rubbed lightly and supportively. You looked up at him with a tilt of your head. 

“I’m glad you’re applying what I’m teaching you.” Sherri smirked, her inner teacher shining through. “Danneel Ackles.” She turned and scolded. “Go - go sit. Go get those gorgeous babies of yours and you relax. Y/N and I have got this from here. What’s in the oven?” She looked around. “Brownies?” Danneel nodded with wide eyes. “Great. And I see there’s a timer set. Jensen. Take your wife to a sofa and make sure she rests.” Sherri untied the apron from Danneel’s waist and tied it around her own. “Oh, and find another apron for my apprentice here.” She shot you a wink and opened the fridge, pulling all kinds of food from within.

Three hours later, the pressure cooker dinged and signaled that dinner was ready. You rushed into the living room, pulling Jared aside quickly and telling him you needed to talk to him before dinner. His face fell with worry as he nodded and followed you into the office.

“What’s goin’ on?” He held your shoulder with one hand, tipping your face up to his with the other. “Are you okay?” 

“I - Jared… I - your mom!” You blabbed. 

“Breathe, sweetheart. What about my mom?” He rubbed the ball of your shoulder. 

“She - oh my God. She said she can’t - she can’t wait to cook every Christmas dinner with me - _every holiday_   _dinner_ with me when I become her daughter!” You inhaled deeply and leaned your head against Jared’s chest. Jared’s face flushed red and he stammered, struggling to find the words to respond. 

“Sh- she just - she wants - she didn’t me- she’s just excited. She likes you a lot, Y/N.” He shook his head, finally completing a thought. “Just try to calm down, okay? Let’s get out there before Danneel makes any more accusations.” Jared laughed nervously, trying to clear the air. You took another deep breath before opening the door. The two of joined everyone else around the table, not without a smirk and wink from Danneel. 

* * *

Dinner had been cleared, the leftovers were packed away, and everyone had stuffed themselves on desserts. JJ summoned you all to the living room, directing you where to sit, leaving a big empty spot for herself on the floor, right in the middle. She plopped into the center of everyone and beamed. 

“Presents?” She squeaked. Danneel shot her a look and JJ changed her tone. “Is it okay with ev’ry-buddy if we do presents now? Like that, Momma?” She turned back to Danneel, who was nodding. Jared let out a cackle before pushing you from between his legs and helping JJ collect all her gifts. “Thank ya.” She smiled as he put the last, biggest one in front of her. Jared bent and pointed to his cheek, waiting for her to take the hint. She stretched up and quickly pecked his cheek before sinking back onto her bent legs. 

“Go ahead.” Jensen nodded as JJ’s fingers pinched the edge of the paper on the first box. She tore into it, and the rest, revealing little things she thought she’d asked for but hadn’t yet received.

“Thank you ev’ryone!” She shouted, causing Zeppelin to fuss in Danneel’s arms. She hushed him and bounced him back to sleep.

“You missed one, Jay.” Danneel directed her to the largest gift, sitting beside her. “Who’s that from?” JJ stood and pointed to the names on the top of the box. 

“I can’t  _read_ , Momma!” She giggled. “Can you read this fer me?” She pushed the box toward Jensen’s dad. He chuckled and pointed to each letter.

“Do you know what that says?” 

“That’s a  _J_. Like my name.” She frowned, her lips pouting out. 

“Right. And that’s?” He pointed to the next letter. 

“That’s a  _A_.” JJ tapped her index finger on her chin. “Can you please jus’ tell me?” She bounced on her heels. 

“It’s from Uncle Jared and Y/N.” Jensen’s father laughed lightly as JJ squealed. Her hands dug under the slotted paper, ripping it and sending shreds in every different direction. 

“Oh my  _graces!”_ She yelled, jumping up and down. 

“Gracious.” Danneel laughed, correcting her. “Oh your gracious.”

“Yeah! That!” JJ nodded with a smiled etched permanently on her face. 

“What is it, Birdie?” Jensen peeked across the room, grinning knowingly. 

“It’s a - it’s - i’ssa  _easy bake!”_ Her fists pounded into the air victoriously. JJ sprinted toward you and Jared, leaping into the air and landing on your legs with her arms wrapped around your neck. “You’re the  _bestest_.” She kissed your lips with a loud smooching sound. “I love you, Y/N!” She pushed your cheeks together as you laughed. 

“I love you too, kiddo.” You hugged her as Jared cleared his throat behind you. 

“You too, Uncle Jared!” She snaked around you and crawled into Jared’s lap, peppering his face with kisses. 

“I’m glad you like it, Jaybird.” He ruffled her hair and she climbed down, running back to her favorite present and staring at it lovingly. 

“Hey, so,” Jensen shifted and stood, “I know we said no gifts…” He plucked a small box from under the tree. “There’s no way I was falling for that and getting the worst husband of the year award. Not after almost missing the birth.” He laughed nervously. “This is for you.” He handed Danneel the box, taking Zeppelin from her.

“Jay…” She sighed. 

“No, open it. Please.” He urged her, a soft smile on his face. You sat back, watching them interact, so much love between them. Tears filled your eyes at just how in love they still were, even all these years and three kids later. 

“Jensen.” She popped the ring box open and gasped. “This is…” She shook her head.

“It’s a stone for JJ’s birthday, then one for each of the twins. And diamonds for… for us.” He smiled shyly.

“It’s beautiful. It’s perfect.” She stood and hugged him, careful not to squish Zeppelin.

“It’s-” He shook his head. 

“Say it.” She nodded. 

“It’s uh - it’s just like you.” He rubbed the back of his neck and mumbled. 

“There it is. My cheeseball.” She tipped his head up and stood on her toes, pressing her lips to his before sliding the ring onto her right ring finger. “Thank you, Jay. I love it. I love you.” They shared another kiss before Arrow began crying in Jensen’s mother’s arms. Danneel walked to grab the baby, then started to leave the room.

“W- wait.” Jared stopped her. You turned over your shoulder and looked at him curiously. “I have one more gift.” He stood and stuffed his hand in his pocket. “It - it’s small, and it’s not for everyone, but I’d really like if everyone was here for it.” He offered quietly. Danneel smiled and popped a pacifier in Arrow’s mouth before sinking back onto the edge of the sofa, one leg folded under her. 

“Jared, what are you doing? All our presents were for the ki-” You stopped as he dropped to one knee in front of you, a black ring box open in his large palm. Your gasp was audible as you clapped your hand over your mouth. “What are you doing?” You spoke against your palm. 

“Just let - let me do this, please?” He begged, and you nodded. His hand reached up and he took yours gently. “I know how this all seems - like it’s too soon, like we’re moving too fast, like… like we’re crazy! And hey, maybe we are, but I know one thing for sure, Y/N, and that is that I have never loved anyone so deeply and so quickly as I fell in love with you.” Tears streamed down your cheeks, dragging black eyeliner with them. “You came into my life so fast and so unexpectedly, but I know that I want this - that I want you - until the day I die. So, please, don’t make me look like a complete idiot, and tell me you’ll marry me?” You choked out a sound before shaking your head and swallowing. “N- no?” Jared’s voice broke as his face fell. 

“No! Jared, of course I will! Yes, I will marry you. Jared Tristan Padalecki, make me your wife.” You nodded, throwing your arms around his neck and tackling him to the floor. Jensen’s dog, Icarus, ran to you and sniffed your hair as you kissed Jared and giggled together. 

“Alright, kids. Let’s keep it PG.” Jensen cleared his throat, glancing at JJ who had her eyes locked on you and Jared. Jared helped you up and after the two of you had stood again, he slipped the ring onto your finger. You held your hand back and admired the sparkling diamonds under the twinkling Christmas lights.

“I love it.” You whispered and leaned into his side as his arm laced around your waist. 

“I love you.” He kissed the top of your head as his parents flew across the room to the two of you, hugging you and welcoming you into their family.


	11. We Go On - Epilogue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Six years after Jared’s Christmas proposal, you’ve built a life of your own, and Christmas comes with even more surprises for both of you.

“Mama, Mama!” The soft smack of feet on hardwood padded toward you. “Daddy?” Aiden caught you and Jared in a bit of a compromising situation. 

“Shit.” Jared mumbled and pulled himself from inside you, rolling over and yanking the covers up around your necks. “Morning, buddy.”

“Mama, you okay?” He furrowed his little brows as he climbed into bed. Your eyes went wide as he tugged at the blankets.

“Yeah, I’m okay. Hey, little man? Could you give me a Daddy a minute?” You pulled one hand above the duvet and ruffled Aiden’s hair. He gave you a big smile and a nod as he climbed down off the mattress. “Jesus.” You sighed, face flushing completely as Jared tipped his head back laughing. “It’s not funny! What if that ends up being his first memory?!” Your palm smacked against Jared’s chest.

“He’ll be fine, babe.” Jared pressed a kiss to the top of your head. “Think he’ll leave us alone long enough to-”

“Don’t even think about it.” Giving Jared a playful shove to his chest, you wriggled out from under the half of his body that had you pinned down.

“Fine. I think my work here is done, anyway.” He smiled proudly as you shook your head and pulled on his black Longhorns t-shirt. When you opened the door, Aiden barreled through the door, and you shot Jared a glare, knowing your son had probably heard every word.

“Daddy, you gonna be home fer Christmas?” Aiden tugged on Jared’s grey shirt. Jared bent and scooped him up, holding him on his hip and frowning a bit.

“Of course I’ll be home, bud. I haven’t missed a Christmas yet, have I?” Jared gave him a bit of a smile as Aiden shook his head. “Exactly. I’ll be here. You’re gonna come in and jump on the bed and wake me up so you can open all the presents Santa brings you, aren’t you?” Aiden nodded, a wide grin splitting his face.

“An’ you an’ Mama are gonna drink all your coffee.” He affirmed with a giggle.

“Yes. Speaking of coffee…” You pointed down the hall toward the stairs, then trekked down to the kitchen, brewing you and Jared each a mug from the Keurig. Jared’s phone rang and he set Aiden down beside you on a chair at the island.

“Wha’ssup, Jay?” He gave you a smile as he took his coffee from you and headed into the living room. His voice was faint and muffled through the space that separated you, but you could still make out what he was saying. “Yeah, we – Aiden asked us this morning if I would be here for Christmas. It’s in our contracts, Jensen. I can’t not be here.” Your heart sank at Jared’s words. The network wanted him and Jensen in Vancouver for Christmas. You lifted Aiden from his seat at the island and eased him into a chair at the table, placing a bowl of oatmeal in front of him.

“Eat, buddy. I’ll be right back.” Without looking at him, you patted his shoulder and made your way to Jared. He turned and looked at you, his eyes full of sadness. “You’re leaving before Christmas, aren’t you?” He didn’t say a word, just licked his lips and closed his eyes. You knew the answer. Jared finished his conversation with Jensen and tucked his phone into the pocket of his sweatpants, stepping toward you. 

“Baby, it’s not-” He started, but you held up your hand and pressed your lips into a thin line, shaking your head.

“Don’t.” You choked out the word, tears stinging your eyes. “I’m not the one you need to explain it to.” You nodded toward the kitchen, where your young son was sitting alone. Jared sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose.

“How the hell am I going to tell him?” He looked down as you shrugged, feeling no remorse. If he was going to leave you alone on Christmas to deal with your sad son, you weren’t going to lie down and take it.

“You better figure it out. And soon.” You turned and walked back to the kitchen, sitting opposite from Aiden and sipping your coffee, watching Jared as he entered the room sluggishly, his bare feet scuffing along the grey tiles.

“Aiden?” He spoke quietly, and your son turned his head up, staring into the hazel eyes that mirrored his own.

“Wha’s wrong, Daddy?” Aiden was so in tune with everyone’s emotions, it almost pained you when he picked up on sadness.

“You – you remember how you asked me if I was gonna be home for Christmas?” Aiden nodded. “Well… Uncle Jensen just called me.”

“An’ you hafta leave.” Aiden’s face fell as he understood. He nodded and Jared crouched beside his chair.

“Hey, buddy, I – I’m sorry.” Jared laid his hand on Aiden’s leg. “You know I want to be here with you and Mama.”

“It’s ‘kay. You gotta work so Mama don’t hafta. I know.” He swung his legs and looked at his feet. You cleared your throat and Jared looked up at you.

“Give me and Mama a minute to talk?” Jared gave Aiden a sad smile. Aiden nodded and slid off his chair, heading down the hall to his playroom. “Y/N…” 

“Don’t, Jared. I told you, I’m not the one you’re really hurting. Did you see his eyes? He’s crushed.” You tapped your fingers against the ceramic of your coffee mug.

“I know. I saw.” Jared chewed his bottom lip.

“And Jensen tried to tell them you can’t be there?”

“That’s what he said.” Jared nodded.

“Wh- what about Danni?” You raised a brow. “Think she has any pull? Since she’s a mom and all.” Jared frowned as he pondered your idea. 

“She might.” He leaned down and kissed your forehead. “Don’t worry, baby. I’ll be home for Christmas.”

“Don’t make promises you can’t keep, Jared.”

* * *

Three days later, Danneel was blowing up your phone with text messages and phone calls, telling you that you owed her a kid-free night. You finally answered her FaceTime call, laughing and agreeing to watch the twins and JJ while she and Jensen had a night out.

“I don’t know how you did it. The way Jared was talking, they couldn’t sway the crew at all.” You shook your head.

“All it takes it a set of boobs to get the job done. You should know that by now.” She winked and you giggled. “Arrow!” She sighed. “Jesus, I gotta go. The kid got into my lipstick again.” Shaking her head, she stood and held her forehead in the crook of her thumb and index finger. “For fuck’s sake…”

“Good luck with that. I’m glad I got a boy.” You chuckled and glanced across the room at Aiden, who was zooming his little plastic cars around their track.

“Well from what I heard, that might be changin’ soon. Don’t count your chickens before they hatch, sweetheart.” She smirked and said her final goodbye, not actually hanging up before you got the chance to hear her telling Arrow lipstick doesn’t belong in her brother’s hair. You giggled and bit your bottom lip, wondering exactly what Danni had heard about your latest endeavors on the baby-making front.

You heard Jared’s phone ring from upstairs and you smiled to yourself. His words were inaudible, but his footsteps pounded down the stairs minutes later, a huge smile on his face.

“Aiden, I think Daddy has some news for you.” You smirked and shot your eyes to Jared, who was barreling through the playroom to you and your son. Aiden spun quickly, just in time for Jared to shove his hands under Aiden’s arms and lift him into the air, spinning him around while he squealed delightfully. The sound was music to your ears. If nothing else in the entire world, all you wanted was your little boy to be happy.

“I know I messed up before, buddy, but I just got a phone call, and they told me I get to stay home with you and Mama for Christmas.” Jared pulled Aiden down and smooched his cheek with a loud, over-exaggerated noise. Aiden gasped, smiling bigger than you’d ever seen.

“Daddy, you  _promise_?” Aiden stuck his little pinky finger into the air, and Jared shot you a smile over his shoulder.

“From the bottom of my heart, little man.” Jared wrapped his finger around his son’s and eased him back onto his feet. Jared walked to you and sat beside you on the small loveseat. “Told you I’d keep my promise.”

“Well…” You licked your lips and took a sip of your tea. “You’re about to have to double the promise you made me in the delivery room.” You waited for realization to come over him.

“You mean…?” His eyes grew wider and you nodded.

“Took the test yesterday. I kind of freaked out a little while ago because Danni made it sound like she knew. I was so scared you found the test in my nightstand.” You laughed.

“I – no, I had no idea. Oh my God.” Jared breathed and wrapped his arms around you. He pulled you into his lap and peppered your face with kisses. As you giggled, you caught Aiden’s attention and he came toddling over to the two of you.

“Wha’s goin’ on?” He scrunched his little nose. You and Jared looked at each other and nodded.

“Mama has some news for you, buddy.” Jared beamed proudly. Aiden tipped his head to the side and waited for you to tell him what was happening.

“You remember how I told you JJ is a big sister?” You lifted him onto your lap, the two of you dog-piling on Jared’s legs. Aiden nodded. “And you said you hope one day you have your own babies to take care of?” He nodded again. “What if I told you there was a baby in my tummy?”

“WHAT?!” He drew back and smacked his hands onto your stomach. “In  _there_?” You and Jared chuckled at his reaction and you nodded.

* * *

Christmas, New Year’s, and Aiden’s birthday came and went. Your little boy turned three on January 4, right before Jared had to head back to Vancouver to start filming. Three weeks later, he and Jensen were at their first convention of the year – in the same city where you and Jared had met. It was a special convention for the two of you, but with all the excitement surrounding your house between the holidays and Aiden’s birthday, you opted to stay in Austin. The Friday night of the convention weekend, Jared FaceTime’d you after you had put Aiden to bed.

“ _Hey, Mama_.” He smiled through the phone.

“Hi.” You gave him a sleepy grin. “Jensen with you? You’re still on set.” You observed. Jared nodded. “Get him over here.” Jared called out to Jensen, beckoning him to bring his face onto the screen.

“ _Oh, hey Y/N.”_  He smiled and waved.

“Hi, Jay.” You bit your bottom lip. “I wanna tell you something before Jared goes public with it.” Jensen raised a brow at that, but nodded, urging you to continue. “We’re pregnant.” Your cheeks heated with blush as small tears pooled in your eyes. Blinking them back, you watched Jensen pull Jared into a hug.

“ _Congratulations, man_.” He clapped his hand on Jared’s back before patting the side of his face. “ _I guess that shit still works after all_.” Jared shook his head, laughing as Jensen turned back to the camera. “ _I’m really happy for you two, Y/N. Does Danni know?_ ”

“I’m about to call her. We wanted to tell you guys before it got to be noticeable.” You moved the camera down to your body and laid your hand on your small bump. You were already just under three months along, and showing way more than you had with Aiden at this point.

“ _Just go see her tomorrow. She’ll like the surprise. Well, both surprises.”_  Jensen winked at you before waving and walking away.

“How are we gonna announce this one?” You asked, and Jared wrinkled his brows in confusion. “To the fans.” You clarified.

“ _Oh. I have a surprise for_ you _, actually_.” He licked his lips.

“Oh?” Your brows lifted as a smirk pulled on your lips.

“ _You’ll see. You go tell Danni about our little jumping bean and I’ll take care of the announcement tomorrow afterwards._ ”

“I have to wait until tomorrow?” You faked a pout as he nodded. “Fine.” You huffed.

“Go get some sleep, baby. You’re getting grumpy.” He teased. Sticking your tongue out at him, you blew each other a kiss and said goodnight, letting him get back to work as you crawled into the too-empty king size bed.

* * *

Saturday morning rolled around and you loaded Aiden into the car and drove the short distance to the Ackles’ house. Aiden bounced with excitement as you told him he couldn’t say anything about the baby until after you talked to Auntie ‘Neel.

“I promise I won’t, Mama. I don’ wanna ruin the ‘prise.” He beamed. You lifted him from his car seat and knelt in front of him beside the car.

“You promise?” You stuck your pinky into the air and his tiny finger wrapped around it tightly as he gave a single, sharp nod. 

The two of you made your way up the long walkway to the door, his little hand in yours. He stood on his toes and pressed the doorbell button. When JJ answered the door, you let her take Aiden’s hand and lead him into the living room. Danni was sitting between the twins watching Peppa Pig.

“Oh thank  _God_.” She launched herself forward. “JJ, watch them?” She motioned to her five-year-olds as her elder daughter nodded. “I need adult interaction.”

“She can handle all three of them?” You asked as Danneel hugged you.

“She’s a pro. Been practicing with the twins since she was three and a half.” She assured you. “Alright let’s bust open this win. I’ve been waitin’ for you to drink it.”

“Oh.” You frowned. “Uh, Danni I – I can’t.“

“Loosen up, it’s Saturday. Our husbands are probably well on their way to drunk. And if they aren’t today, they will be tomorrow.” She popped the cork and poured one glass. As she moved to the second, you grabbed the bottle and stopped her.

“No, Danni. I  _can’t_.” You opened your eyes a bit, hoping she’d take the hint.

“Oh my God!” She understood why you couldn’t drink. It was just about the only reason for you to not have a drink with her that she’d let slide. “Oh my God!” She squealed and pulled you tight against her chest, crushing you in a hug. “How far along?” She drew back and laid her hands on either side of your almost non-existent bump. 

“Three months on Tuesday.”

“And you waited this long to tell me?!” She lightly smacked your hand. “Some best friend you are.” You laughed and shook your head as she sipped her wine. “I’m happy for you though. Jared wanted another one real bad.” You furrowed your brows and tipped your head to the left. “Oh, he didn’t tell you that.” You shook your head. “He told me back around… the beginning of December, probably. He wanted another more than anything.”

Your eyes filled with tears as you thought about Jared being over the moon about the baby growing inside you. He was such a good dad to Aiden, you couldn’t wait to see him do it all again.

“Speaking of Jared.” You pulled out your phone and texted him that Danneel knew. He sent back a heart-eyes emoji and a few minutes later, your phone buzzed with a post notification from him. 

“All these years and you’re still a fangirl.” Danneel chuckled as your phone lit up.

“His biggest.” You shrugged with a smirk. “Oh…” You clapped your hand over your mouth softly and let the tears fall from your eyes, clearing your vision. “When did he…”

“Let me see!” Danneel whipped her phone from her pocket and hurried to Jared’s Instagram page. “Oh!” She buzzed with joy. “Look how cute that is!”

“Aiden, come here, buddy.” You called over the half wall into the living room. He set his Legos down with Zep and came running into the kitchen.

“Yeah, Mama?” He looked up at you.

“When did you and Daddy do this?” You showed him the phone.

“Oh, shoot!” He stomped his foot. “You weren’t s’poseta see that! Daddy gonna be  _so mad_.” You laughed and bent to pick him up.

“No, little man, he won’t be. He’s the one who showed me. He showed everybody. You know what that means?” You pulled his shirt down, fixing it where it rode up as he slipped down your side.

“Aunt ‘Neel knows too?!” He beamed at her and she nodded. “I can tell!” He threw a fist into the air and pumped his arm in a ‘yes’ motion. You and Danneel laughed and shook your heads at his little victory.

“Aiden? You never answered me.” You raised your brows at him. “When did you take this picture?”

“My birthday.” He shrugged. “It was a secret, Mama. Daddy made me  _promise_.” He held up his pinky, and you knew exactly why your son hadn’t spoken a word to you about the photo.

“Daddy made me a promise, too, buddy.” You smiled.

“Did he keep it?” He twirled your hair around his fingers. 

“He did.” You nodded.

“What was it, Mama?”

“He promised me, the day you were born, that he would be the best Daddy he could be. He promised he’d love you more than anything. He promised to make sure we always had a good life and a happy home.” You leaned your forehead against his. 

“Oh yeah.” Aiden nodded and kissed the tip of your nose. “He kept that.”


End file.
